Consumer Behavior at the fintech company Cashea

Decision-making framework based on behavioral finance

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to understand consumer behavior from the perspective of decision architecture within the framework of behavioral finance among users of the fintech platform Cashea in Valencia, Carabobo State. The methodology follows the interpretive paradigm, employing a qualitative approach and a phenomenological-hermeneutic design. To collect data, semi-structured interviews were conducted with three key informants, whose testimonies were analyzed through categorization and triangulation. Among the findings, it is evident that the purchase decision results from rational planning and a complex interaction with the digital interface that mitigates the perception of spending. Users perceive credit as a mechanism for relief in the face of economic uncertainty, where the platform’s design acts as an inducer of immediate gratification. It is concluded that the tool’s decision architecture influences assisted financial discipline, delegating part of behavioral control to the algorithm. This reveals a tension between consumer autonomy and the cognitive biases activated by the digital environment. The study suggests that the integration of psychology and accounting is essential for understanding new consumption patterns in contexts of economic constraint, reaffirming that financial behavior is a phenomenon of a human and relational nature.