IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finlet/v58y2023ipds1544612323009674.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How does digital finance affect the efficiency of urban green economies? Evidence from China

Author

Listed:
  • Li, Hongmei
  • Xu, Ruizhe

Abstract

Based on the panel data of 238 prefecture-level cities from 2012 to 2021, the fixed effect model, mediation effect model and threshold regression model are used to empirically examine how digital finance affects urban green economic efficiency. The results of the study show that in terms of the overall effect, digital financial development is conducive to improving urban green economic efficiency, and this conclusion still holds after the robustness test. Green technological innovation helps to improve urban green economic efficiency, and it is an important conduction mechanism for digital finance to drive the urban green economic efficiency to realize the leap. The results of the threshold regression show that there is a nonlinear effect of digital finance on urban green economic efficiency. Heterogeneity discussion found that digital finance has a more significant effect on the improvement of green economic efficiency in large cities and medium-mini-sized cities than in mega-cities. This study further expands the relevant content of the impact effect of digital finance, and provides theoretical and practical experience for the continuous improvement of urban economic efficiency.

Suggested Citation

  • Li, Hongmei & Xu, Ruizhe, 2023. "How does digital finance affect the efficiency of urban green economies? Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PD).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:58:y:2023:i:pd:s1544612323009674
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2023.104595
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1544612323009674
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.frl.2023.104595?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 search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sudeep Jain & Daniela Gabor, 2020. "The Rise of Digital Financialisation: The Case of India," New Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(5), pages 813-828, July.
    2. Lee, Chien-Chiang & Tang, Manting & Lee, Chi-Chuan, 2023. "Reaping digital dividends: Digital inclusive finance and high-quality development of enterprises in China," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(2).
    3. Jingyi Zhong & Weide Chun & Wu Deng & Hui Gao, 2023. "Can Mergers and Acquisitions Promote Technological Innovation in the New Energy Industry? An Empirical Analysis Based on China’s Lithium Battery Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-25, August.
    4. Qian Zhang & Ye Tao & Conghu Liu, 2023. "Synergistic Agglomeration of Manufacturing and Logistics Industries and Urban Green Economy Efficiency: Influence and Upgrading," Mathematical Problems in Engineering, Hindawi, vol. 2023, pages 1-19, February.
    5. Haisheng Chen & Dingqing Ni & Shuiping Zhu & Ying Ying & Manhong Shen, 2022. "Does the National Credit Demonstration Policy Affect Urban Green Economy Efficiency? Evidence from the Yangtze River Delta Region of China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-20, August.
    6. Hansen, Bruce E., 1999. "Threshold effects in non-dynamic panels: Estimation, testing, and inference," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 93(2), pages 345-368, December.
    7. 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.
    8. Wang, Yafei & Bai, Ying & Quan, Tianshu & Ran, Rong & Hua, Lei, 2023. "Influence and effect of industrial agglomeration on urban green total factor productivity—On the regulatory role of innovation agglomeration and institutional distance," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 1158-1173.
    9. Du, Mengfan & Zhang, Yue-Jun, 2023. "The impact of producer services agglomeration on green economic development: Evidence from 278 Chinese cities," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    10. Yang Liu & Yanlin Yang & Huihui Li & Kaiyang Zhong, 2022. "Digital Economy Development, Industrial Structure Upgrading and Green Total Factor Productivity: Empirical Evidence from China’s Cities," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(4), pages 1-23, February.
    11. Tamazian, Artur & Chousa, Juan Piñeiro & Vadlamannati, Krishna Chaitanya, 2009. "Does higher economic and financial development lead to environmental degradation: Evidence from BRIC countries," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 246-253, January.
    12. Li, Jie & Wu, Yu & Xiao, Jing Jian, 2020. "The impact of digital finance on household consumption: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 317-326.
    13. Xie, Peijun & Jamaani, Fouad, 2022. "Does green innovation, energy productivity and environmental taxes limit carbon emissions in developed economies: Implications for sustainable development," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 66-78.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Guanglong Li & Xuhai Zhao & Yanfeng Jiang & Yuandong Zou & Shuyang Liu & Xuejing Li & Liangen Zeng, 2025. "How Can Digital Economy Accessibility Accelerate Urban Land Green Transformation in China? Evidence from Threshold and Intermediary Effects," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-23, February.
    2. Cui, Xiao & Li, Pingrui, 2025. "Digital economy, environmental expenditure, and green total factor productivity," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    3. Sun, Zhonghua & Wei, Wei, 2025. "Green technology innovation and corporate brand competitiveness: an analysis based on the role of environmental policy," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    4. Zhao, Qiao & Wang, Wangqing, 2024. "Impact of digital financial tools on intermediate goods: Synergies between external funding and internal R&D investment," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 67(PB).
    5. Xiong, Wei & Jiang, Mengzhen & Liu, Yingying, 2024. "Digital economy, risk attitudes, and entrepreneurial decision-making in urban and rural households in China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).
    6. Wang, Wenwen, 2025. "Digital finance and firm green innovation: The role of media and executives," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    7. Yang, Yi & Shen, Liyin & Sang, Meiyue & Ding, Xinyi, 2025. "The impact of digitalization on urban sustainable development – An economic perspective," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    8. Min Lu & Xuehan Zhou & Xiaosa Ren & Xing Wang, 2025. "How Can China’s Carbon Emissions Trading Pilot Improve New Quality Productivity?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-32, April.
    9. 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).
    10. Yang, Sen & Xu, Jiawei & Lei, Tianyi & Wang, Mengdi, 2024. "How to improve the efficiency of green development? The role of digital finance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    11. Ma, Jinghao & Shang, Yujie & Liang, Zhenghan, 2024. "National central cities, technological innovation, and economic growth," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 67(PB).
    12. Li, Bo & Liu, Zhenya & Jia, Xuemei & Ma, Fengping, 2024. "Digital finance, financing constraints, and green technological innovation: A spatial analysis," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    13. Wei Jiang & Nana Jiang, 2025. "From sustainable development towards resilience: Does digital finance matter in enhancing ecological resilience?," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(2), pages 2535-2552, April.
    14. Li, Haibo & Xiao, Biyun, 2025. "Strengthening provincial export resilience through the digital economy: Analysis of impacts, global value chain integration, and regional disparities in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    15. 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.
    16. V. Sanz-Torro & C. Calafat-Marzal & J. M. Guaita-Martinez & L. Marti, 2025. "An integrated approach to resource efficiency, green markets and support measures in SMEs," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 1-24, December.

    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. Shuhao Zhang & Xuetong Li & Daqian Shi, 2025. "How does digital finance affect energy consumption in China? Empirical evidence from China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(5), pages 10719-10735, May.
    2. Yunyan Jiang & Feng Deng, 2022. "Multi-Dimensional Threshold Effects of the Digital Economy on Green Economic Growth?—New Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-22, October.
    3. Li, Yao, 2025. "How does digital financial inclusion affect households’ CO2? Micro-evidence from an emerging country," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    4. Wei Jiang & Nana Jiang, 2025. "From sustainable development towards resilience: Does digital finance matter in enhancing ecological resilience?," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(2), pages 2535-2552, April.
    5. Yingying Zhou & Zhuoqing Fang & Nan Li & Xueyan Wu & Yuehan Du & Zonghan Liu, 2019. "How Does Financial Development Affect Reductions in Carbon Emissions in High-Energy Industries?—A Perspective on Technological Progress," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-25, August.
    6. Lingyao Wang & Taofeng Wu & Fangrong Ren, 2025. "Exploring the Role of Digital Economy in Energy Optimization of Manufacturing Industry Under the Constraint of Carbon Reduction? Based on Spatial Panel Threshold Hybrid Model," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-26, May.
    7. Ren, Xiaohang & Zeng, Gudian & Zhao, Yang, 2023. "Digital finance and corporate ESG performance: Empirical evidence from listed companies in China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    8. Yue, Sishi & Yang, Mo & Dong, Dayong, 2024. "Do enterprises adopting digital finance exhibit higher values? Based on textual analysis," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    9. Lixin Zhou & Caiping Qu & Li Zhi, 2024. "Research on the Impact of Digital Infrastructure on Urban Breakthrough Green Innovation: A Case Study of the Yangtze River Economic Belt in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-22, November.
    10. Zhao, Ruizeng & An, Yuchen & Tu, Hanyun & Song, Jiashan, 2024. "China's economic growth and low-carbon development under the background of resource curse: A new perspective based on digital finance," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).
    11. Jingyi Qin & Qingyu Xu, 2024. "The Impact of the Digital Economy on Population Dividends in China: Based on the Dual Perspective of Quantity and Quality," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-23, May.
    12. Qiutong Xue & Sixian Feng & Kairan Chen & Muchen Li, 2022. "Impact of Digital Finance on Regional Carbon Emissions: An Empirical Study of Sustainable Development in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-26, July.
    13. Shiu-Wan Hung & Chiao-Ming Li & Ming-Yi Shen, 2018. "Regional analysis of the relationship between CO 2 emissions and financial development," International Journal of Global Energy Issues, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 41(1/2/3/4), pages 2-13.
    14. Guoge Yang & Feng Deng & Fengyi Wang & Zhenyu Mao & Xingsheng Wu & Fengyu Zhang, 2024. "Digital economy, resource distortion and low-carbon inclusive development-Evidence from the perspectives of a threshold effect and knowledge spillover effect," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 19(7), pages 1-32, July.
    15. Yuxin Fang & Hongjun Cao & Jihui Sun, 2022. "Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Regional Green Development under China’s Environmental Decentralization System—Based on Spatial Durbin Model and Threshold Effect," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-27, November.
    16. Jiao, Yong & Wang, Gaofei & Li, Chengyou & Pan, Jia, 2024. "Digital inclusive finance, factor flow and industrial structure upgrading: Evidence from the yellow river basin," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 62(PA).
    17. Deng, Qiu Shi & Alvarado, Rafael & Cuesta, Lizeth & Tillaguango, Brayan & Murshed, Muntasir & Rehman, Abdul & Işık, Cem & López-Sánchez, Michelle, 2022. "Asymmetric impacts of foreign direct investment inflows, financial development, and social globalization on environmental pollution," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 236-251.
    18. Mingzhao Xiong & Wenqi Li & Chenjie Jenny & Peixu Wang, 2023. "Financial Inclusion through Digitalization: Improving Emerging Drivers of Industrial Pollution—Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-17, June.
    19. Zhenhua Zhang & Chao Hua & Marshall S. Jiang & Jianjun Miao, 2024. "The spatial spillover effect of financial growth on high-quality development: Evidence from Yellow River Basin in China," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-17, December.
    20. Li, Lei & Zheng, Yifan & Ma, Shaojun & Ma, Xiaoyu & Zuo, Jian & Goodsite, Michael, 2025. "Unfavorable weather, favorable insights: Exploring the impact of extreme climate on green total factor productivity," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 626-640.

    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:finlet:v:58:y:2023:i:pd:s1544612323009674. 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/frl .

    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.