Al-Kharaj: Journal of Islamic Economic and Business
Vol. 8 No. 3 (2026): All articles in this issue include authors from 3 countries of origin (Indonesi

The Influence of Perceived Usefulness, Trust, and Ease of Access to Capital on MSME Business Sustainability: The Moderating Role of Business Owners' Education Level

Rachel Amanda Vinka Artamefia (Universitas Islam Malang)
Jeni Susyanti (Universitas Islam Malang)
Harun Alrasyid (Universitas Islam Malang)



Article Info

Publish Date
23 Aug 2026

Abstract

The business sustainability of MSMEs is a strategic issue in the Indonesian economy, considering their substantial contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employment in Indonesia. However, MSME owners still face various obstacles in accessing formal financing, influenced by perceived usefulness, trust in institutions, and ease of service access. This study aims to analyze the impact of these three variables on MSME business sustainability and to examine the moderating role of the business owner's education level in this relationship. A quantitative approach with an explanatory design was employed, involving 268 MSME owners—selected via purposive sampling—who have used or are currently using financing from formal financial institutions. Data were collected using a Google Forms-based questionnaire distributed via social media and analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling-Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) with SmartPLS software (version 4.1.1.6) to identify relationships between variables. Structural testing comprised two stages: the measurement model (outer loading, reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity) and the structural model (R-squared, Q² Predict, and effect size/f²), followed by hypothesis testing. The analysis results indicate that trust in financial institutions and ease of access to capital have a significant positive effect on MSME business sustainability, whereas perceived usefulness do not have a significant effect. Education level only strengthens the influence of perceived usefulness on business sustainability but does not moderate the influence of trust or ease of access to capital. These findings underscore the importance of strengthening trust in financial institutions, improving ease of access to capital, and developing the educational capacity of business owners to support MSME business sustainability.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

alkharaj

Publisher

Subject

Economics, Econometrics & Finance

Description

Al-Kharaj, Journal of Islamic Economic and Business is peer-reviewed journal published by program studi ekonomi syariah , Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Palopo. Al-Kharaj focus on the research of Islamic Economic and Business. The aims of this journal is to explore and develop economic related ...