IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finana/v103y2025ics1057521925003291.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Incentive or catering effect of environmental subsidies? Evidence from ESG reports on greenwashing

Author

Listed:
  • Liu, Guangrui
  • Fang, Ying
  • Qian, Hao
  • Ding, Zhigang
  • Zhang, Alex
  • Zhang, Songlin

Abstract

This study examines how government environmental subsidies impact firm environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information disclosure by focusing on incentive-driven and catering effects. Using data from Chinese listed companies (2011−2021), we develop an ESG report greenwashing catering index. We show that these subsidies generally promote greenwashing in ESG disclosures, with the catering effect outweighing the incentive effect. This is driven mainly by increased investor sentiment, analyst attention and risk-taking capacity following subsidy receipt. Management's greenwashing is amplified by executives' political connections and is more prevalent in the sample of heavy polluters, state-owned enterprises, firms under strong environmental regulation, firms exhibiting voluntary disclosure and firms with poor ESG performance. Overall, we reveal the catering effect of ESG reporting on greenwashing through government environmental subsidies and introduce a new theoretical perspective on such greenwashing.

Suggested Citation

  • Liu, Guangrui & Fang, Ying & Qian, Hao & Ding, Zhigang & Zhang, Alex & Zhang, Songlin, 2025. "Incentive or catering effect of environmental subsidies? Evidence from ESG reports on greenwashing," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finana:v:103:y:2025:i:c:s1057521925003291
    DOI: 10.1016/j.irfa.2025.104242
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1057521925003291
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.irfa.2025.104242?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. Zhang, Dongyang & Meng, Li & Zhang, Jintao, 2023. "Environmental subsidy disruption, skill premiums and ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    2. Marco Guerzoni, 2010. "The impact of market size and users' sophistication on innovation: the patterns of demand," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(1), pages 113-126.
    3. Yan Zhang & Margarethe F. Wiersema, 2009. "Stock market reaction to CEO certification: the signaling role of CEO background," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(7), pages 693-710, July.
    4. Tan, Ruipeng & Cai, Qijun & Pan, Lulu, 2024. "Faking for fortune: Emissions trading schemes and corporate greenwashing in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    5. Shuang Wang & Shukuan Zhao & Dong Shao & Hongyu Liu, 2020. "Impact of Government Subsidies on Manufacturing Innovation in China: The Moderating Role of Political Connections and Investor Attention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-21, September.
    6. Kent Walker & Fang Wan, 2012. "The Harm of Symbolic Actions and Green-Washing: Corporate Actions and Communications on Environmental Performance and Their Financial Implications," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 109(2), pages 227-242, August.
    7. Kejing Chen & Wenqi Guo & Yanling Kang & Qingqing Wan, 2021. "Does religion improve corporate environmental responsibility? Evidence from China," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(2), pages 808-818, March.
    8. Christopher Marquis & Michael W. Toffel & Yanhua Zhou, 2016. "Scrutiny, Norms, and Selective Disclosure: A Global Study of Greenwashing," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 27(2), pages 483-504, April.
    9. Xue, Dawei & Feng, Jiayin & zhu, Zhihong, 2023. "Governmental subsidies, corporate environmental investments and firm performance: Evidence based on oil & petroleum industry," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    10. Amihud, Yakov & Mendelson, Haim & Lauterbach, Beni, 1997. "Market microstructure and securities values: Evidence from the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 365-390, September.
    11. Na, Chaohong & Ni, Zhixing & Shu, Qiu & Zhang, He, 2024. "Can government subsidies improve corporate ESG performance? Evidence from listed enterprises in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    12. 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.
    13. Peng, Fei & Zhou, Shibiao & Zhou, Peng, 2023. "Local government fiscal stress and corporate risk-taking: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 1677-1695.
    14. Kose John & Lubomir Litov & Bernard Yeung, 2008. "Corporate Governance and Risk‐Taking," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 63(4), pages 1679-1728, August.
    15. 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.
    16. Tee, Kienpin & Chen, Xihui Haviour & Hooy, Chee-Wooi, 2024. "The evolution of corporate social responsibility in China: Do political connection and ownership matter?," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    17. Beat Reber & Agnes Gold & Stefan Gold, 2022. "ESG Disclosure and Idiosyncratic Risk in Initial Public Offerings," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(3), pages 867-886, September.
    18. Du, Jun & Mickiewicz, Tomasz, 2016. "Subsidies, rent seeking and performance: Being young, small or private in China," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 22-38.
    19. Shih, Yi-Cheng & Wang, Yao & Zhong, Rui & Ma, Yi-Ming, 2021. "Corporate environmental responsibility and default risk: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    20. Amihud, Yakov, 2002. "Illiquidity and stock returns: cross-section and time-series effects," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 5(1), pages 31-56, January.
    21. Maoyan She & Die Hu & Yuandi Wang & Li Li, 2023. "How do top management team characteristics affect government R&D subsidy grants? Evidence from an information economics perspective," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(1), pages 330-353, February.
    22. Francesca Bernini & Fabio La Rosa, 2024. "Research in the greenwashing field: concepts, theories, and potential impacts on economic and social value," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 28(2), pages 405-444, June.
    23. Sun, Guanglin & Wang, Jiawei & Ai, Yongfang, 2024. "The impact of government green subsidies on stock price crash risk," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    24. Yu, Ellen Pei-yi & Luu, Bac Van & Chen, Catherine Huirong, 2020. "Greenwashing in environmental, social and governance disclosures," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    25. Rhodes-Kropf, Matthew & Robinson, David T. & Viswanathan, S., 2005. "Valuation waves and merger activity: The empirical evidence," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(3), pages 561-603, September.
    26. Yang, Tingting & Xu, Botong, 2023. "Incentive effects of government subsidy on technological innovation: Evidence from pharmaceutical industry," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 55(PA).
    27. Mara Faccio, 2006. "Politically Connected Firms," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(1), pages 369-386, March.
    28. Guangrui Liu & Hao Qian & Qianqian Wu & Fei Han, 2024. "Research on the masking effect of vertical interlock on ESG greenwashing in the context of sustainable Enterprise development," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 196-209, January.
    29. Florackis, Chris & Fu, Xi & Wang, Jingjing, 2023. "Political connections, environmental violations and punishment: Evidence from heavily polluting firms," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    30. Zhao, Yujie & Zhou, Donghua & Zhao, Kangsheng & Zhou, Ping, 2019. "Is the squeaky wheel getting the grease? Earnings management and government subsidies," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 297-312.
    31. Ren, Shenggang & Sun, Helin & Zhang, Tao, 2021. "Do environmental subsidies spur environmental innovation? Empirical evidence from Chinese listed firms," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    32. Zhu, Danyu & Gao, Xin & Luo, Zijun & Xu, Weidong, 2022. "Environmental performance and corporate risk-taking: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    33. Huang, Hongfu & Xing, Xinjie & He, Yong & Gu, Xiaoyu, 2020. "Combating greenwashers in emerging markets: A game-theoretical exploration of firms, customers and government regulations," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    34. Lin, Xudong & Zhu, Hao & Meng, Yiqun, 2023. "ESG greenwashing and equity mispricing: Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PD).
    35. Liao, Feimei & Sun, Yinghao & Xu, Shulin, 2023. "Financial report comment letters and greenwashing in environmental, social and governance disclosures: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(PB).
    36. Peter Seele & Lucia Gatti, 2017. "Greenwashing Revisited: In Search of a Typology and Accusation‐Based Definition Incorporating Legitimacy Strategies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 239-252, February.
    37. Jiang, Cuixia & Li, Xiuxiu & Xu, Qifa & Liu, Junhang, 2024. "Does environmental protection tax impact corporate ESG greenwashing? A quasi-natural experiment in China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 774-786.
    38. Fan Xia & Jiaying Chen & Xue Yang & Xiaoliang Li & Bing Zhang, 2023. "Financial constraints and corporate greenwashing strategies in China," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(4), pages 1770-1781, July.
    39. Bi, Kexin & Huang, Ping & Wang, Xiangxiang, 2016. "Innovation performance and influencing factors of low-carbon technological innovation under the global value chain: A case of Chinese manufacturing industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 275-284.
    40. Guangrui Liu & Hao Qian & Yong Shi & Deli Yuan & Ming Zhou, 2024. "How do firms react to capital market liberalization? Evidence from ESG reporting greenwashing," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 4329-4344, September.
    41. Shao, Yanmin & Chen, Zhongfei, 2022. "Can government subsidies promote the green technology innovation transformation? Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 716-727.
    42. Huang, Ying, 2022. "Government subsidies and corporate disclosure," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(1).
    43. Kleer, Robin, 2010. "Government R&D subsidies as a signal for private investors," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 1361-1374, December.
    44. Zhang, Dongyang, 2022. "Green financial system regulation shock and greenwashing behaviors: Evidence from Chinese firms," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    45. Hu, Shuo & Wang, Ailun & Du, Kerui, 2023. "Environmental tax reform and greenwashing: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    46. Guangrui Liu & Qianqian Wu & Hongyong Zhou & Yunsong Wang, 2023. "The Catering Effect of Green Mergers and Acquisitions in Heavy Pollution Industries," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 59(6), pages 1865-1881, May.
    47. Raiteri, Emilio, 2018. "A time to nourish? Evaluating the impact of public procurement on technological generality through patent data," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(5), pages 936-952.
    48. Lee, Michael T. & Raschke, Robyn L., 2023. "Stakeholder legitimacy in firm greening and financial performance: What about greenwashing temptations?☆," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 155(PB).
    49. Fuxiu Jiang & Kenneth A Kim, 2020. "Corporate Governance in China: A Survey [The role of boards of directors in corporate governance: a conceptual framework and survey]," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 24(4), pages 733-772.
    50. Xiang Cai & Jing Li & Jun Wu & Haijing Zhang & Ping Chen & Xin Huang, 2022. "The Impact of Enterprise R&D Investment and Government Subsidies on Technological Progress: Evidence from China’s PV Industry," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-26, June.
    51. Zhang, Dongyang, 2023. "Subsidy expiration and greenwashing decision: Is there a role of bankruptcy risk?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    52. Xingqiang Du, 2015. "How the Market Values Greenwashing? Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 128(3), pages 547-574, May.
    53. Yu, Fang (Frank), 2008. "Analyst coverage and earnings management," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(2), pages 245-271, May.
    54. Lin, Boqiang & Zhang, Aoxiang, 2024. "Impact of government subsidies on total factor productivity of energy storage enterprises under dual-carbon targets," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    55. Li, Menghan & Chen, Qi, 2024. "Executive pay gap and corporate ESG greenwashing: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 95(PA).
    56. Li, Zhenghui & Huang, Zimei & Su, Yaya, 2023. "New media environment, environmental regulation and corporate green technology innovation:Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    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. Xiong, Jiacai & Yang, Zelin & Wang, Qing Sophie, 2025. "Can non-punitive regulation curb corporate greenwashing?Evidence from a word embedding model," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    2. Guangrui Liu & Hao Qian & Yong Shi & Deli Yuan & Ming Zhou, 2024. "How do firms react to capital market liberalization? Evidence from ESG reporting greenwashing," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 4329-4344, September.
    3. Sneideriene, Agne & Legenzova, Renata, 2025. "Greenwashing prevention in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosures: A bibliometric analysis," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    4. Zhang, Mengzhi & He, Wenjian, 2025. "Encouraging or inhibiting: Can analyst attention reduce corporate greenwashing behavior?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 943-962.
    5. Song, Zenglu & Lu, Jinjing & Xu, Xinkuo, 2025. "Virtue over Deception: Confucian Culture and Corporate Greenwashing Behavior," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 1569-1591.
    6. Wang, Yuxi & Hu, Fangjia & Wang, Yunyun, 2024. "Analyst coverage and greenwashing: Evidence from Chinese A-Share listed corporations," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    7. Francesca Bernini & Fabio La Rosa, 2024. "Research in the greenwashing field: concepts, theories, and potential impacts on economic and social value," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 28(2), pages 405-444, June.
    8. Li, Ziyang & Luo, Tao & Li, Jiangyi & Tian, Yihao, 2024. "Does social responsibility reform curb corporate greenwashing: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).
    9. Yin, Lei & Yang, Yuanyuan, 2024. "How does digital finance influence corporate greenwashing behavior?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 93(PB), pages 359-373.
    10. Xiang, Yilin & Chen, Lu & Zhang, Zhenya & Sun, Xinyu, 2024. "Does perceived greenwashing promote or inhibit ethical voice? Effects of moral disengagement and perceived competitive pressure," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    11. Qian, Shuitu & Yang, Zhenyu & Yang, Lingxiao & Zhang, Yun, 2025. "Institutional investors’ green attention and corporate greenwashing: The effectiveness of external governance," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 2192-2206.
    12. Liu, Jing-Yue & Lei, Quan & Li, Ruojin & Zhang, Yue-Jun, 2024. "Resistance or motivation? Impact of climate risk on corporate greenwashing: An empirical study of Chinese enterprises," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    13. Cao, June & Huang, Zijie & Shahid, Ahmad Usman, 2025. "Fostering environmental integrity via investor-focused communications: Private in-house meeting disclosures and greenwashing behaviors," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 232(C).
    14. Xue, Kunkun & Chen, Xiaoxiao & Sun, Peipei & Li, Yongqing, 2024. "Supply chain network centrality and corporate greenwashing behavior," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    15. Peng Hu & Xuming Li & Nian Li & Yiying Wang & Derek D. Wang, 2024. "Peeking into Corporate Greenwashing through the Readability of ESG Disclosures," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-23, March.
    16. Guangrui Liu & Hao Qian & Qianqian Wu & Fei Han, 2024. "Research on the masking effect of vertical interlock on ESG greenwashing in the context of sustainable Enterprise development," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 196-209, January.
    17. Bai, Caiquan & Yao, Di & Xue, Qihang, 2025. "Does artificial intelligence suppress firms' greenwashing behavior? Evidence from robot adoption in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    18. Jiang, Cuixia & Xu, Jialin & Xu, Qifa & Fu, Weizhong, 2024. "Can we rest easy under the registration-based IPO reform? Evidence from the Chinese growth enterprise market," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 990-1006.
    19. Li Long & Chunze Wang & Min Zhang, 2025. "Does Social Media Pressure Induce Corporate Hypocrisy? Evidence of ESG Greenwashing from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 197(2), pages 311-338, March.
    20. Jiao, Anqi & Lu, Juntai & Ren, Honglin & Wei, Jia, 2024. "The role of AI capabilities in environmental management: Evidence from USA firms," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).

    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:103:y:2025:i:c:s1057521925003291. 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.