Does mineral resource dependency distinctly impede financial access, depth, and efficiency? The mediating role of digitalization

The current literature reveals an unclear picture concerning the financial resource curse (FRC) and the role of digitalization in contemporary times. Several empirical studies supported the FRC hypothesis, while some verified the resource blessing. Given the evolving landscape of global economies and the increasing integration of digital technologies, there's a motivation to explore the role of digitalization in shaping financial outcomes alongside natural resources. In this regard, the study aims to elucidate the combined impact of both natural resources (NR) and digitalization (DIG) on financial institution access (FIA), financial institution efficiency (FIE), and financial institution depth (FID) from 2001 to 2022 for ten resource-generating nations. For empirical evaluations, a panel-correlated standard error (PCSE) estimator is employed, which exhibits that NR validates the FRC paradox and adversely affects FIA, FID, and FIE by 0.084%, 0.166%, and 0.03%. In contrast, DIG stimulates FIA by 0.124%, FID by 0.043 and FIE by 0.065%, respectively. Besides, when the resource-endowed countries are embodied with DIG, it triggers FIA, FID, and FIE by 0.017%, 0.024%, and 0.041%. It implies that conducive digital developments have the potential to deviate the FRC problem into a blessing for these resource-intensive economies. In addition, similar findings are endorsed from generalized least squares (GLS) with variant magnitudes and significance levels. The study provides valuable policy implications for all financial analysts, policymakers, and stakeholders.