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Purpose This study examines how perceived security, customer trust and perceived ease of use of FinTech-enabled banking services shape customer satisfaction in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The proposed relationships are grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Expectation–Confirmation Theory (ECT), which provide the theoretical lens for explaining customers’ satisfaction with FinTech applications. Design/methodology/approach Adopting a descriptive, cross-sectional design, data were collected using a structured questionnaire from 376 bank customers who actively use FinTech-enabled services in Bahrain, complemented by a small number of semi-structured interviews to contextualise the survey evidence. The data were analysed using SPSS, including reliability and validity tests, descriptive statistics, and multiple regression models to test the hypothesised links between security, trust, ease of use and customer satisfaction. Findings The results indicate that perceived security, customer trust and perceived ease of use all exert a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction. Regression analysis shows that perceived ease of use is the strongest predictor of satisfaction, followed by perceived security and customer trust, highlighting that customers who perceive FinTech applications as easy to use, secure and trustworthy report markedly higher satisfaction with their digital banking experiences. Research limitations/implications The study is limited to a non-probability sample of Bahraini bank customers and a cross-sectional design, which restricts the generalisability of the findings and the ability to infer causality. Future research could validate and extend the proposed model using longitudinal and multi-country data and explore mediation and moderation mechanisms within the FinTech–customer satisfaction relationship. Practical implications The findings suggest that banks should simultaneously prioritise user-friendly digital interfaces, robust cybersecurity measures and transparent, trust-building communication in order to enhance customer satisfaction and foster long-term loyalty to FinTech-enabled banking services. Social implications By improving the usability, security and transparency of FinTech services, banks can support greater financial inclusion and encourage wider adoption of digital banking among different demographic and socio-economic segments of society. Originality/value This study provides one of the first empirical examinations of FinTech-enabled customer satisfaction in Bahrain and extends TAM/ECT by integrating security and trust alongside ease of use in a single explanatory model in a Gulf emerging-market context. It offers region-specific insights that complement existing evidence from other countries and inform banks and regulators seeking to design more customer-centric FinTech strategies.