IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finana/v102y2025ics1057521925001243.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How does green finance reform affect corporate ESG greenwashing behavior?

Author

Listed:
  • Hu, Shi
  • Chen, Peilin
  • Zhang, Chunli

Abstract

This study empirically analyzes the relationship between corporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) greenwashing behaviors and green finance reform from 2011 to 2023, focusing on the 2017 Green Finance Reform and Innovation Pilot Zone. Findings suggest that green finance reform can promote corporate ESG greenwashing behaviors by increasing executive myopia and providing adequate financing. Further research indicates that the negative impact of green finance reform can be mitigated by implementing effective internal control management and developing regional digitization. This study alerts the government to the adverse consequences of green finance reform and offers valuable insights.

Suggested Citation

  • Hu, Shi & Chen, Peilin & Zhang, Chunli, 2025. "How does green finance reform affect corporate ESG greenwashing behavior?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finana:v:102:y:2025:i:c:s1057521925001243
    DOI: 10.1016/j.irfa.2025.104037
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1057521925001243
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.irfa.2025.104037?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. Yi, Fang & Cao, Chenru & Xu, Jingxuan, 2024. "How antitrust enforcement affects corporate ESG performance? Evidence from merger review cases in China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 1730-1746.
    2. Cui, Xiaona & Mohd Said, Ridzwana & Abdul Rahim, Norhuda & Ni, Mengjiao, 2024. "Can green finance Lead to green investment? Evidence from heavily polluting industries," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 95(PB).
    3. Zhang, Dongyang & Wang, Cao & Miao, Shan & Deng, Lei, 2024. "The impact of firm's ESG performance on the skill premium: Evidence from China's green finance reform pilot zone," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    4. Wei Li & Weining Li & Veikko Seppänen & Timo Koivumäki, 2023. "Effects of greenwashing on financial performance: Moderation through local environmental regulation and media coverage," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(1), pages 820-841, January.
    5. Yang, Yanwu & Ren, Haili & Liu, Yutong & Yang, Yusen, 2025. "Integration of technology and finance, digital transformation and corporate green innovation," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    6. Wang, Juxian & Ma, Mengdi & Dong, Tianyi & Zhang, Zheyuan, 2023. "Do ESG ratings promote corporate green innovation? A quasi-natural experiment based on SynTao Green Finance's ESG ratings," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    7. Feng, Chao & Zhong, Siqi & Wang, Miao, 2024. "How can green finance promote the transformation of China's economic growth momentum? A perspective from internal structures of green total-factor productivity," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(PA).
    8. He, Feng & Guo, Xinyao & Yue, Pengpeng, 2024. "Media coverage and corporate ESG performance: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    9. Lei Zhang & Lili Xu & Mingzi Gao & Mingdong Zhou, 2024. "Can Agricultural Credit Promote the Green Transformation of China’s Agriculture?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-14, December.
    10. Riccardo Torelli & Federica Balluchi & Arianna Lazzini, 2020. "Greenwashing and environmental communication: Effects on stakeholders' perceptions," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(2), pages 407-421, February.
    11. Li, Yuantian & Xu, Yingming, 2024. "Impact of green finance on China's pollution reduction and carbon efficiency: Based on the spatial panel model," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    12. Fan, Lin & Peng, Binbin & Lin, Zhongguo & Zou, Hongyang & Du, Huibin, 2024. "The effects of green finance on pollution and carbon reduction: Evidence from China’s industrial firms," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    13. Jun Su & Lin Xue, 2024. "ESG Performance, Demographic Trend, and Labour Investment Efficiency in China," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 31(20), pages 2207-2213, November.
    14. Zhao, Shanshan & Wu, Qiong & Zhou, Xiaodong, 2025. "Impact of green credit on financing constraints of energy-consuming firms," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    15. Lian, Yonghui & Ye, Tao & Zhang, Yiyang & Zhang, Lin, 2023. "How does corporate ESG performance affect bond credit spreads: Empirical evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 352-371.
    16. Ye, Xiaoyu & Tian, Xiangyu, 2025. "Green finance and ESG performance: A quasi-natural experiment on the influence of green financing pilot zones," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(PB).
    17. Xie, Yi & Jiang, Jinwen & Wang, Dong, 2024. "Green finance policy and labor demand: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    18. Kong, Dongmin & Liu, Chenhao, 2024. "Centralization and regulatory enforcement: Evidence from personnel authority reform in China," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    19. Pang, Si Lu & Liu, Hui & Hua, Gui Hong, 2024. "How does digital finance drive the green economic growth? New discoveries of spatial threshold effect and attenuation possibility boundary," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 89(PA), pages 561-581.
    20. Li, Weihao & Hu, Hongbing & Hong, Zekun, 2024. "Green finance policy, ESG rating, and cost of debt——Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    21. Omri, Henda & Jarraya, Bilel & Kahia, Montassar, 2025. "Green finance for achieving environmental sustainability in G7 countries: Effects and transmission channels," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    22. Zhang, Yingying & Feng, Nianqiao & Wang, Xinpeng, 2024. "Can the green finance pilot policy promote the low-carbon transformation of the economy？," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 93(PA), pages 1074-1086.
    23. Wan, Jieru & Yin, Libo & Wu, You, 2024. "Return and volatility connectedness across global ESG stock indexes: Evidence from the time-frequency domain analysis," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 89(PB), pages 397-428.
    24. Wang, Chao & Li, Mengyu & Liu, Xiaoxing, 2024. "Does credit carbon exposure affect banks' profits and risks? Evidence from China," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 370(C).
    25. Chuanhao Liu & Peng Cui & Hongxia Zhao & Zhanzhen Zhang & Yanshuo Zhu & Huijiao Liu, 2024. "Green Finance, Economic Policy Uncertainty, and Corporate ESG Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-21, November.
    26. Qian, Shuitu & Yu, Wenzhe, 2024. "Green finance and environmental, social, and governance performance," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 89(PA), pages 1185-1202.
    27. Zhang, Dongyang, 2022. "Environmental regulation and firm product quality improvement: How does the greenwashing response?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    28. Wang, Yanpeng & Cui, Lianbiao & Zhou, Jie, 2025. "The impact of green finance and digital economy on regional carbon emission reduction," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    29. Zhang, Dongyang, 2023. "Can environmental monitoring power transition curb corporate greenwashing behavior?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 212(C), pages 199-218.
    30. Zihao Zhou & Shanlang Lin & Jianfeng Shi & Junpei Huang & Xiaoxin Han, 2024. "Can Mega Sporting Events Promote Urban Green Transformation? Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-18, July.
    31. Szerena Szabo & Jane Webster, 2021. "Perceived Greenwashing: The Effects of Green Marketing on Environmental and Product Perceptions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 171(4), pages 719-739, July.
    32. Zhou, Yicheng & Lin, Boqiang, 2025. "Helping hand or grabbing hand: The impact of land finance on the green economic development in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    33. Hu, Haichuan & Jia, Zhenting & Yang, Siyao, 2025. "Exploring FinTech, green finance, and ESG performance across corporate life-cycles," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    34. Wang, Sanchuan & Shu, Wanwu & Cui, Lianbiao, 2024. "Green finance policy and green economic transformation," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PB).
    35. Wang, Jiaqi & Tian, Jiaxin & Kang, Yuxin & Guo, Kun, 2023. "Can green finance development abate carbon emissions: Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 73-91.
    36. Hua, Mingzhong & Li, Zhe & Zhang, Yudong & Wei, Xiaobei, 2024. "Does green finance promote green transformation of the real economy?," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(PB).
    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. Xu, Siyun & Bai, Xiaodong & Chen, Xia, 2025. "Corporate environmental, social, and governance performance, investor attention, and corporate development capability—An empirical examination based on moderating and threshold effects," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    2. Shi, Dinghao & Tan, Haoyu & Ling, Yixin & Liu, Yunuo & Liu, Bo & Tu, Yongqian, 2025. "Impact of environmental information uncertainty and market competition on corporate ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    3. Ji, Heli & Yu, Zhihai & Tian, Grace (Li) & Wang, David (Han) & Wen, Yue, 2025. "Market competition, environmental, social and corporate governance investment, and enterprise green innovation performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    4. Yin, Huairuo & Tang, Yu & Jin, Hao, 2025. "Sustainability in the supply chain, environmental, social and corporate governance performance, and corporate value," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    5. Yang, Jinjuan & Qian, Kaihao & Sun, Yiyao, 2025. "Do investors pay attention to the long-term sustainable company development?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    6. Cai, Cen & Yang, Qianyi & Tu, Da & Tian, Grace Li & Tu, Yongqian, 2025. "Catalytic effect of the Shanghai–Hong Kong Stock Connect policy on corporate ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    7. Lin, Huiting & Wen, Jiayu & Li, Wei & He, Yurun, 2025. "Strategic alliances and corporate ESG performance," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    8. Li, Junjun & Wu, Tong & Hu, Boqiang & Pan, Dongliang & Zhou, Yaqiong, 2025. "Artificial intelligence and corporate ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    9. Chen, Che & Chen, Song & Wu, Dingwen, 2025. "The impact of ESG performance on R&D investment stability: Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    10. Wang, Junwei & Xing, Yafei & Xiao, Daibo, 2025. "An empirical study on the relationship between executives' financial background and corporate ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    11. Tang, Meihuan, 2025. "Data element utilization and firm value," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    12. Weng, Min, 2025. "Green innovation through artificial intelligence technology: Enhancing environmental, social, and governance performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    13. Sun, Ze & Cai, Cen & Tan, Haoyu & Ji, Heli & Tian, Grace (Li), 2025. "Corporate ESG performance and competitive strategies from the perspective of financial markets: Strategic significance of firm size," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    14. Li, Menghan & Chen, Qi, 2024. "Executive pay gap and corporate ESG greenwashing: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 95(PA).
    15. Yang, Qiming & Xiang, Ruilin, 2025. "Structure of interest-bearing liabilities and corporate ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    16. Tang, Xinhui & Du, Shujun & Deng, Wenwen, 2025. "Business innovation in digital startups: A case study of an AI startup," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    17. Sun, Tingxuan & Liu, Suqin & Guo, Min, 2025. "Effects of green finance and digital transformation on enhancing corporate ESG performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    18. Gao, Yang & Ma, Wanli & Chen, Cheng, 2025. "Intermediate inputs, import trade and corporate ESG performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    19. Wei, Ming & Xu, Xingui, 2025. "The impact of local debt management on corporate ESG Performance: A quasi-natural experiment based on the new budget law," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    20. Shi, Dinghao & Li, Zhiqiang & Huang, Yan & Tan, Haoyu & Ling, Yixin & Liu, Yunuo & Tu, Yongqian, 2024. "Market competition and ESG performance-based on the mediating role of board independence," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).

    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:finana:v:102:y:2025:i:c:s1057521925001243. 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/620166 .

    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.