IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecmode/v162y2026ics0264999326002129.html

Heterogeneous political strategies and the distribution of government relief loans: Evidence from the response to COVID-19 in China

Author

Listed:
  • Liang, Qi
  • Wei, Mingyu
  • Yu, Fengyan
  • Gao, Xuan

Abstract

How do firms’ political strategies affect the allocation of government relief loans by governments and banks during downturns? By distinguishing between two types of political strategies—political connections (PCs) and corporate social responsibility (CSR)—and using a dataset of Chinese firms during the COVID-19 pandemic, we find that (1) political strategies—and especially PCs—help firms win government relief loans and that the effect of CSR substitutes for that of PCs. (2) Political strategies are more likely to operate by mitigating information asymmetries than by fostering rent-seeking activities. (3) Both PCs and CSR can help firms be selected by the government as supporting candidates, but only PCs can facilitate firms in being chosen by commercial banks as final targets. (4) Firms that receive government relief loans are better off than their counterparts are. The results emphasize the value of unpacking the heterogeneity of political strategies and illuminate the importance of government–bank coordination in the distribution of government relief loans.

Suggested Citation

  • Liang, Qi & Wei, Mingyu & Yu, Fengyan & Gao, Xuan, 2026. "Heterogeneous political strategies and the distribution of government relief loans: Evidence from the response to COVID-19 in China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecmode:v:162:y:2026:i:c:s0264999326002129
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econmod.2026.107683
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264999326002129
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.econmod.2026.107683?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lei Li & Philip E Strahan & Song Zhang, 2020. "Banks as Lenders of First Resort: Evidence from the COVID-19 Crisis," The Review of Corporate Finance Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 9(3), pages 472-500.
    2. Yuyuan Chang & Wen He & Jianling Wang, 2021. "Government Initiated Corporate Social Responsibility Activities: Evidence from a Poverty Alleviation Campaign in China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 173(4), pages 661-685, November.
    3. Blau, Benjamin M. & Brough, Tyler J. & Thomas, Diana W., 2013. "Corporate lobbying, political connections, and the bailout of banks," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 3007-3017.
    4. Brandt, Loren & Li, Hongbin, 2003. "Bank discrimination in transition economies: ideology, information, or incentives?," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 387-413, September.
    5. Xu, Gang & Yano, Go, 2017. "How does anti-corruption affect corporate innovation? Evidence from recent anti-corruption efforts in China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 498-519.
    6. Clemens, Jeffrey & Veuger, Stan, 2021. "Politics and the distribution of federal funds: Evidence from federal legislation in response to COVID-19," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    7. Kristin Wilson & Stan Veuger, 2017. "Information Frictions in Uncertain Regulatory Environments: Evidence from U.S. Commercial Banks," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 79(2), pages 205-233, April.
    8. Granja, João & Makridis, Christos & Yannelis, Constantine & Zwick, Eric, 2022. "Did the paycheck protection program hit the target?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(3), pages 725-761.
    9. Borghesi, Richard & Houston, Joel F. & Naranjo, Andy, 2014. "Corporate socially responsible investments: CEO altruism, reputation, and shareholder interests," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 164-181.
    10. Ole‐Kristian Hope & Heng Yue & Qinlin Zhong, 2020. "China's Anti‐Corruption Campaign and Financial Reporting Quality†," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 37(2), pages 1015-1043, June.
    11. Lei Li & Philip E. Strahan & Song Zhang, 2020. "Banks as Lenders of First Resort: Evidence from the COVID-19 Crisis," NBER Working Papers 27256, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Caroline Flammer, 2018. "Competing for government procurement contracts: The role of corporate social responsibility," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(5), pages 1299-1324, May.
    13. Billett, Matthew T. & Yu, Miaomiao, 2016. "Asymmetric Information, Financial Reporting, and Open-Market Share Repurchases," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 51(4), pages 1165-1192, August.
    14. Francken, Nathalie & Minten, Bart & Swinnen, Johan F.M., 2012. "The Political Economy of Relief Aid Allocation: Evidence from Madagascar," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 486-500.
    15. Dursun-de Neef, H． Özlem & Schandlbauer, Alexander & Wittig, Colin, 2023. "Countercyclical capital buffers and credit supply: Evidence from the COVID-19 crisis," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    16. Telg, Sean & Dubinova, Anna & Lucas, Andre, 2023. "Covid-19, credit risk management modeling, and government support," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    17. Karakaplan, Mustafa U., 2021. "This time is really different: The multiplier effect of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) on small business bank loans," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    18. David N. Laband & John P. Sophocleus, 2019. "Measuring rent-seeking," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 181(1), pages 49-69, October.
    19. Li, Lei & Strahan, Philip E., 2021. "Who Supplies PPP Loans (and Does It Matter)? Banks, Relationships, and the COVID Crisis," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 56(7), pages 2411-2438, November.
    20. Duchin, Ran & Hackney, John, 2021. "Buying the Vote? The Economics of Electoral Politics and Small-Business Loans," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 56(7), pages 2439-2473, November.
    21. Liu, Baohua & Lin, Yan & Chan, Kam C. & Fung, Hung-Gay, 2018. "The dark side of rent-seeking: The impact of rent-seeking on earnings management," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 94-107.
    22. Song, Peixin & Teng, Fei & Xin, Yu & Xu, Liping, 2025. "Transaction-based government-business relationship via government customer," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    23. Berger, Allen N. & Karakaplan, Mustafa U. & Roman, Raluca A., 2023. "Whose bailout is it anyway? The roles of politics in PPP bailouts of small businesses vs. banks," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    24. Ram T. S. Ramakrishnan & Anjan V. Thakor, 1984. "Information Reliability and a Theory of Financial Intermediation," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 51(3), pages 415-432.
    25. Duchin, Ran & Martin, Xiumin & Michaely, Roni & Wang, Hanmeng, 2022. "Concierge treatment from banks: Evidence from the paycheck protection program," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    26. Claessens, Stijn & Feijen, Erik & Laeven, Luc, 2008. "Political connections and preferential access to finance: The role of campaign contributions," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(3), pages 554-580, June.
    27. Nishant Dass & Massimo Massa, 2011. "The Impact of a Strong Bank-Firm Relationship on the Borrowing Firm," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(4), pages 1204-1260.
    28. Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, 2015. "Control Function Methods in Applied Econometrics," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 420-445.
    29. Thierry Verdier & Daron Acemoglu, 2000. "The Choice between Market Failures and Corruption," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(1), pages 194-211, March.
    30. Degryse, Hans & Goncharenko, Roman & Theunisz, Carola & Vadasz, Tamas, 2023. "When green meets green," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    31. Joel F. Houston & Liangliang Jiang & Chen Lin & Yue Ma, 2014. "Political Connections and the Cost of Bank Loans," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 52(1), pages 193-243, March.
    32. Errico, Lucia & Rondinella, Sandro & Silipo, Damiano B. & Sonmez, Sinem, 2025. "Assessing the efficacy of mitigation strategies on the COVID-19 outbreak," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    33. MARA FACCIO & RONALD W. MASULIS & JOHN J. McCONNELL, 2006. "Political Connections and Corporate Bailouts," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(6), pages 2597-2635, December.
    34. Bryan W. Husted & Walid Saffar, 2023. "Elections and CSR Engagement: International Evidence," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 184(1), pages 115-138, April.
    35. Paolo Mauro, 1995. "Corruption and Growth," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(3), pages 681-712.
    36. Asim Ijaz Khwaja & Atif Mian, 2005. "Do Lenders Favor Politically Connected Firms? Rent Provision in an Emerging Financial Market," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(4), pages 1371-1411.
    37. Agarwal, Sumit & Qian, Wenlan & Seru, Amit & Zhang, Jian, 2020. "Disguised corruption: Evidence from consumer credit in China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 137(2), pages 430-450.
    38. Frank Hond & Kathleen A. Rehbein & Frank G. A. Bakker & Hilde Kooijmans-van Lankveld, 2014. "Playing on Two Chessboards: Reputation Effects between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Corporate Political Activity (CPA)," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(5), pages 790-813, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Li, Xiang, 2022. "The role of state-owned banks in crises: Evidence from German banks during COVID-19," IWH Discussion Papers 6/2022, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH), revised 2022.
    2. Chen, Yinghui & Ren, Ting & Xiao, Youzhi & Yue, Heng, 2025. "De-politicization and corporate risk-taking," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    3. Yu Fengyan & Zhang Hongjuan & Justin Tan & Liang Qi, 2022. "Non‐Market Strategies and Credit Benefits: Unpacking Heterogeneous Political Connections in Response to Government Anti‐Corruption Initiatives," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(2), pages 349-389, March.
    4. Marsh, W. Blake & Sharma, Padma, 2024. "Loan guarantees in a crisis: An antidote to a credit crunch?," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    5. Li, Guangzi & Chan, Kam C., 2021. "Anti-corruption intensity and loan contracting: Evidence from non-state owned firms in China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
    6. Ding, Rong & Li, Jialong & Wu, Zhenyu, 2018. "Government affiliation, real earnings management, and firm performance: The case of privately held firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 138-150.
    7. Berger, Allen N. & Demirgüç-Kunt, Asli, 2021. "Banking research in the time of COVID-19," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).
    8. Jackowicz, Krzysztof & Kozłowski, Łukasz & Podgórski, Błażej & Winkler-Drews, Tadeusz, 2020. "Do political connections shield from negative shocks? Evidence from rating changes in advanced emerging economies," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    9. Barbakadze, I., 2023. "With a Little Help from My Friend: Political Connections and Allocation of COVID-19 Aid," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 2355, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    10. Benjamin A. Abugri & Theophilus T. Osah, 2025. "US Bank Lending to Small Businesses: An Analysis of COVID-19 and the Paycheck Protection Program," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-26, April.
    11. Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong & Daniel Aghanya & Tazeeb Rajwani, 2020. "Corporate Political Strategies in Weak Institutional Environments: A Break from Conventions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 161(4), pages 855-876, February.
    12. Jackowicz, Krzysztof & Kozłowski, Łukasz & Mielcarz, Paweł, 2014. "Political connections and operational performance of non-financial firms: New evidence from Poland," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(C), pages 109-135.
    13. Huneeus, Federico & Kaboski, Joseph & Larrain, Mauricio & Schmukler, Sergio L. & Vera, Mario, 2022. "The Distribution of Crisis Credit: Effects on Firm Indebtedness and Aggregate Risk," CEPR Discussion Papers 17061, Centre for Economic Policy Research.
    14. Abdul‐Rahman Khokhar & Hesam Shahriari, 2022. "Is the SEC captured? Evidence from political connectedness and SEC enforcement actions," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(2), pages 2725-2756, June.
    15. Liu, Li & Liu, Qigui & Tian, Gary & Wang, Peipei, 2018. "Government connections and the persistence of profitability: Evidence from Chinese listed firms," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 110-129.
    16. Yan Leung Cheung & P. Raghavendra Rau & Aris Stouraitis, 2012. "How much do firms pay as bribes and what benefits do they get? Evidence from corruption cases worldwide," NBER Working Papers 17981, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Nan Zhang & Qiaozhuan Liang & Huiying Li & Xiao Wang, 2022. "The organizational relationship–based political connection and debt financing: Evidence from Chinese private firms," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 74(1), pages 69-105, January.
    18. Cai, Weixing & Hu, Feng & Xu, Fangming & Zheng, Liyi, 2022. "Anti-corruption campaign and corporate cash holdings: Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(PA).
    19. Michelson, Noam, 2023. "The revolving door of former civil servants and firm value: A comprehensive approach," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    20. Jian Wang & Luyuan Wang & Hongrui Feng & Jun Zhang, 2025. "Politically connected CEOs and liquidity risk: some Chinese evidence," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 64(4), pages 1671-1718, May.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecmode:v:162:y:2026:i:c:s0264999326002129. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/30411 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.