IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finlet/v85y2025ipes1544612325014175.html

The accountability system for operation and investment and the sustainable development of state-owned enterprises: Evidence from ESG performance

Author

Listed:
  • Lun, Miaoxing
  • Fu, Yumei
  • Chen, Wenchuan
  • Liu, Zijian

Abstract

Based on the operating and investment accountability system for state-owned enterprises (SOEs), this paper empirically examines the impact of operating and investment accountability on the sustainable development capability of SOEs, using a sample of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2013 to 2021. We find that the operating and investment accountability system significantly enhances the sustainable development capability of SOEs, meaning their ESG performance shows clear improvement. Mechanism analysis reveals that the operating and investment accountability system primarily influences corporate sustainable development capability through promoting green innovation, improving investment efficiency, and reducing agency costs. Furthermore, sub-item tests conducted across the three dimensions of Environmental, Social, and Governance show that the operational and investment accountability system has a significant positive effect on all three dimensions. This paper extends the research on the influencing factors of corporate sustainable development capability and the economic consequences of the operating and investment accountability system, providing important insights for promoting high-quality corporate development, optimizing government regulatory measures, and advancing the modernization of governance capabilities and systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Lun, Miaoxing & Fu, Yumei & Chen, Wenchuan & Liu, Zijian, 2025. "The accountability system for operation and investment and the sustainable development of state-owned enterprises: Evidence from ESG performance," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 85(PE).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:85:y:2025:i:pe:s1544612325014175
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2025.108162
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1544612325014175
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.frl.2025.108162?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. Mu, Weiwei & Liu, Kefu & Tao, Yunqing & Ye, Yongwei, 2023. "Digital finance and corporate ESG," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    2. Wu, Yanjun & Chen, Wenchuan & Yan, Han, 2024. "The accountability system for operation and investment and audit quality of state-owned enterprises," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PB).
    3. He, Feng & Ding, Cong & Yue, Wei & Liu, Guanchun, 2023. "ESG performance and corporate risk-taking: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    4. Noel Brown & Craig Deegan, 1998. "The public disclosure of environmental performance information—a dual test of media agenda setting theory and legitimacy theory," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 21-41.
    5. Liu, Yanqi & Ke, Jinjun & Chen, Aihua & Cai, Xiang, 2025. "Judicial independence and corporate innovation: Evidence from China's unified management of local courts reform," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    6. Scott Richardson, 2006. "Over-investment of free cash flow," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 11(2), pages 159-189, September.
    7. Chen, Sicen & Lin, Shuping & Luo, Yalin & Zhang, Pengdong, 2025. "How do entrepreneurial directors shape financial reporting quality in non-profit organizations?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    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. He, Feng & Qin, Shuqi & Liu, Yuanyuan & Wu, Ji (George), 2022. "CSR and idiosyncratic risk: Evidence from ESG information disclosure," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
    10. Guangyou Zhou & Lian Liu & Sumei Luo, 2022. "Sustainable development, ESG performance and company market value: Mediating effect of financial performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 3371-3387, November.
    11. Yang, Yiye & Li, Xiaohong & Zhang, Qihao & Zhang, Pengdong, 2025. "The externalities of managerial myopia: Aspiration performance gap and film quality in China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    12. Chen, Sicen & Liu, Siyi & Zhang, Junsheng & Zhang, Pengdong, 2023. "The effect of extreme rainfall on corporate financing policies," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 216(C), pages 670-685.
    13. Wang, Jiaxin & Yuan, Xue & Huang, Xiang & Liu, Chengxin & Zhang, Pengdong, 2024. "Can digitalization facilitate cross-border M&A? Evidence from Chinese A-share listed companies," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(PA).
    14. Chen, Wenchuan & Liu, Yu & Liu, Siyi & Chen, Yugang & Zhang, Pengdong, 2024. "The governance effects of social media engagement on M&A outcomes: Evidence from China," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    15. Shu, Hao & Tan, Weiqiang, 2023. "Does carbon control policy risk affect corporate ESG performance?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    16. Long, Houyin & Wu, Guilin & Wang, Jiaxin & Zhang, Pengdong, 2023. "How U.S. job policy affects China's scientific and technological manufacturing firms? A perspective based on the competitive environment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    17. Thorsten Beck & Ross Levine & Alexey Levkov, 2010. "Big Bad Banks? The Winners and Losers from Bank Deregulation in the United States," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 65(5), pages 1637-1667, October.
    18. Zheng, Siyu & Zhang, Qihao & Zhang, Pengdong, 2023. "Can customer concentration affect corporate ESG performance?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PB).
    19. Li, Yanqiong & Li, Sihao, 2024. "ESG performance and innovation quality," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 1361-1373.
    20. Wang, Haijun & Jiao, Shuaipeng & Ma, Chao, 2024. "The impact of ESG responsibility performance on corporate resilience," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 93(PB), pages 1115-1129.
    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, Min & Wang, Zijia & Wei, Zhe, 2026. "Digital new quality productivity and high-quality development of enterprises," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    2. He, Dongjin & Zhou, Jiajun & Li, Yingmei & Zhong, Zhengqi, 2025. "The impact of physical exercise on risk asset allocation," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 86(PE).
    3. Deng, Meizhen & Gao, Jiapeng & Yuan, Gecheng & Ke, Linyu & Yao, Junchen, 2025. "Data-driven hiring in firms: Evidence from the launch of Chinese public data platforms," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 86(PA).
    4. Yang, Yiye & Li, Xiaohong & Zhang, Qihao & Zhang, Pengdong, 2025. "The externalities of managerial myopia: Aspiration performance gap and film quality in China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    5. Ding, Zijia & Liu, Qian & Che, Dexin, 2025. "Specialization in Bank lending and firm deleveraging: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    6. Zheng, Tianyu & Zhang, Kunpeng & Lin, Zhenxing, 2025. "ECL model and the development of shadow banking?," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    7. Feng, Yongjie & Zhang, Zenglian & Zhang, Jingxian & Zhou, Wenjie, 2025. "More authentic data asset disclosure by myopic managers: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    8. Wang, Xiaodong & Deng, Yunfeng & Mao, Xiaomeng, 2025. "The impact of bank digital transformation on enterprises digital technology innovation in China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    9. Zhiyuan, Dong & Zenglian, Zhang & Mingqin, Chen, 2025. "Impact of local government attention on basic research," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    10. Lin, Bo & Wang, Xiaohan & Wu, Jingyang & Wu, Yibing, 2026. "Does subindustry disclosure policy affect auditor information supply? Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    11. Liu, Xin & Liu, Chenlan & Duan, Mingzhe & Chen, Sicen, 2025. "Cash management amid HFCAA-Induced data breach risks: A comparative analysis of reactive vs. proactive responses in Chinese firms," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    12. Liu, Yanqi & Ke, Jinjun & Chen, Aihua & Cai, Xiang, 2025. "Judicial independence and corporate innovation: Evidence from China's unified management of local courts reform," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    13. Ni, Yunsong, 2025. "Data assets and corporate ESG performance: Evidence from Chinese listed companies," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 86(PF).
    14. Zhang, Ruichen & Wen, Lei & Xu, Ling, 2025. "Answering without being asked: The effect of voluntary disclosure of digital strategy on stock price synchronicity," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    15. Lin, Xiaowei & Zhang, Pengdong & Yang, Zhihao & Chen, Sicen, 2025. "US sanctions and corporate innovation: Evidence from Chinese listed firms," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    16. Chen, Lirong & Long, Yuxuan & Tang, Xuemei & Wang, Jiani, 2025. "Can accounts receivable factoring restrain corporate financialization? Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    17. Zhang, Li & Chen, Xikai & Peng, Jiao & Guo, Tongtong, 2025. "Can digital inclusive finance promote the Internet business model? Empirical evidence from Chinese listed firms," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    18. Zheng, Yulan & Qiu, Xingyu & Long, Houyin & Li, Yujie, 2025. "The impact of the environmental tax reform on green M&A activities of heavily polluting enterprises," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 86(PF).
    19. Pengfei Ge & Yichao Liu & Chuxiong Tang & Rui Zhu, 2025. "Green bonds and corporate Environmental social and governance performance: Innovative approaches to identifying greenwashing in green bond markets," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 32(1), pages 1060-1078, January.
    20. Chen, Sicen & Lin, Shuping & Luo, Yalin & Zhang, Pengdong, 2025. "How do entrepreneurial directors shape financial reporting quality in non-profit organizations?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 99(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:finlet:v:85:y:2025:i:pe:s1544612325014175. 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.