IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/riibaf/v76y2025ics0275531925000650.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The green circuit: Tracing digital inclusive finance's role in sustainable urban development

Author

Listed:
  • Gao, Zhiyuan
  • Zhu, Yingnan
  • Wei, Yihang
  • Hao, Yu

Abstract

Digital inclusive finance (DIF) can fully leverage technological advantages to overcome obstacles faced by traditional financial service models, becoming an effective tool to promote inclusive green growth (IGG). This paper examines the combined influence of DIF on urban prosperity, green development, and social equity. This is after examining the impact of DIF from provincial and single viewpoints in previous studies. DIF has been shown to effectively enhance urban IGG and have a long-term effect based on empirical research using urban panel data from China. In a heterogeneity analysis, the results indicate that DIF improves IGG in central cities, non-resource-based cities, and eastern cities significantly. In the context of urban IGG, DIF contributes to urban IGG through technological innovation, human capital, and investment levels. This study focuses on DIF to promote the transition of the economy and contribute to high-quality development objectives. This research provides empirical evidence and policy implications for using DIF to achieve these goals.

Suggested Citation

  • Gao, Zhiyuan & Zhu, Yingnan & Wei, Yihang & Hao, Yu, 2025. "The green circuit: Tracing digital inclusive finance's role in sustainable urban development," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:riibaf:v:76:y:2025:i:c:s0275531925000650
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ribaf.2025.102809
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0275531925000650
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ribaf.2025.102809?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. Shuming Ren & Lianqing Li & Yueqi Han & Yu Hao & Haitao Wu, 2022. "The emerging driving force of inclusive green growth: Does digital economy agglomeration work?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 1656-1678, May.
    2. Isaac K. Ofori & Francesco Figari & Nathanael Ojong, 2023. "Towards sustainability: The relationship between foreign direct investment, economic freedom and inclusive green growth," Working Papers of the African Governance and Development Institute. 23/023, African Governance and Development Institute..
    3. Yang Liu & Chunyu Liu & Mi Zhou, 2021. "Does digital inclusive finance promote agricultural production for rural households in China? Research based on the Chinese family database (CFD)," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 13(2), pages 475-494, January.
    4. Yang, Xiaolan & Huang, Yidong & Gao, Mei, 2022. "Can digital financial inclusion promote female entrepreneurship? Evidence and mechanisms," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    5. Yu Peng & Ying Qiu & You Li & Xinwan Peng, 2024. "Does digital inclusive finance promote carbon emission reduction of enterprises," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 19(7), pages 1-24, July.
    6. Li Yang & Zhechen Geng, 2022. "Impact of Digital Financial Inclusion on Optimization of Employment Structure: Evidence from China," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 54(57), pages 6625-6638, December.
    7. Hong, Claire Yurong & Lu, Xiaomeng & Pan, Jun, 2021. "FinTech adoption and household risk-taking," BOFIT Discussion Papers 14/2021, Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT).
    8. Mr. Bas B. Bakker, 2023. "Unveiling the Hidden Impact of Urban Land Rents on Total Factor Productivity," IMF Working Papers 2023/170, International Monetary Fund.
    9. Shobande, Olatunji A. & Tiwari, Aviral Kumar & Ogbeifun, Lawrence & Trabelsi, Nader, 2024. "Demystifying circular economy and inclusive green growth for promoting energy transition and carbon neutrality in Europe," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 666-681.
    10. Fu, Hengni & Zheng, Chengsi & Yang, PingYu, 2024. "Digital inclusive finance and green transformation of manufacturing enterprises: Empirical analysis based on the dual perspectives of demand and supply," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    11. 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).
    12. Yu Hao & Shiyao Liu & Aiai Zhao & Guoyao Yan, 2024. "How Does Digital Financial Inclusion Affect Energy Usage? Evidence from Prefecture-Level Cities in China," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 60(4), pages 769-792, March.
    13. Yongzheng Liu & Jie Mao, 2019. "How Do Tax Incentives Affect Investment and Productivity? Firm-Level Evidence from China," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 11(3), pages 261-291, August.
    14. Hong, Claire Yurong & Lu, Xiaomeng & Pan, Jun, 2021. "FinTech adoption and household risk-taking," BOFIT Discussion Papers 14/2021, Bank of Finland, Institute for Economies in Transition.
    15. Razzaq, Asif & Yang, Xiaodong, 2023. "Digital finance and green growth in China: Appraising inclusive digital finance using web crawler technology and big data," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).
    16. Zhang, Chenjing & Yang, Siyue & Yan, Borui & Wang, Mancang, 2023. "Mitigating natural resource depletion and enterprise resource risk: How does inclusive digital finance supports green recovery?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(PA).
    17. repec:zbw:bofitp:2021_014 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Ofori, Isaac K. & Figari, Francesco & Ojong, Nathanael, 2023. "Towards sustainability: The relationship between foreign direct investment, economic freedom and inclusive green growth," MPRA Paper 116956, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Xie, Qichang & Ma, Di & Raza, Muhammad Yousaf & Tang, Songlin & Bai, Dingchuan, 2023. "Toward carbon peaking and neutralization: The heterogeneous stochastic convergence of CO2 emissions and the role of digital inclusive finance," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    20. De Pascale, Gianluigi & Romagno, Anna, 2024. "Globalization and ICT capital endowment: How do they impact on an inclusive Green Growth Index?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 463-474.
    21. Amar Johri & Mohammad Asif & Preeti Tarkar & Waseem Khan & Rahisha & Mohammad Wasiq, 2024. "Digital financial inclusion in micro enterprises: understanding the determinants and impact on ease of doing business from World Bank survey," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-10, December.
    22. Vijay P. Ojha & Joydeep Ghosh & Basanta K. Pradhan, 2022. "The role of public expenditure on secondary and higher education for achieving inclusive growth in India," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 73(1), pages 49-77, February.
    23. Haitao Wu & Shiyue Luo & Suixin Li & Yan Xue & Yu Hao, 2024. "Fostering Urban Inclusive Green Growth: Does Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Matter?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(4), pages 677-698, February.
    24. Hasan, Mohammad Maruf & Du, Fang, 2023. "The role of foreign trade and technology innovation on economic recovery in China: The mediating role of natural resources development," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    25. Lu, Ling & Liu, Peng & Yu, Jian & Shi, Xunpeng, 2023. "Digital inclusive finance and energy transition towards carbon neutrality: Evidence from Chinese firms," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(PB).
    26. Guo, Dong & Li, Lin & Pang, Guoguang, 2024. "How does digital inclusive finance affect county's common prosperity: Theoretical and empirical evidence from China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 340-358.
    27. Zheng, Xiaodong & Wang, Yinglin & Wu, Qi & Zhou, Yanran, 2024. "Digital inclusive finance and migrant wages: Evidence from over 700,000 internal migrants in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 62(PA).
    28. Yang Shen & Xiaoyang Guo & Xiuwu Zhang, 2023. "Digital Financial Inclusion, Land Transfer, and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-25, April.
    29. Li, Yuchen & Jin, Guangyi & Cui, Zhehao & Lv, Bishun & Xu, Zhejun, 2024. "Does digital inclusive finance promote regional green inclusive growth?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 62(PB).
    30. Sun, Yang & Tang, Xinwei, 2022. "The impact of digital inclusive finance on sustainable economic growth in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    31. Goodman-Bacon, Andrew, 2021. "Difference-in-differences with variation in treatment timing," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 254-277.
    32. Wei, Danqi & Ahmad, Fayyaz & Chandio, Abbas Ali & Khan, Irfan, 2024. "Digital financial inclusion role to promote renewable energy technology innovation in Chinese prefectural cities: Moderating role of environmental governance," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 237(PB).
    33. Mukalayi, Nancy Muvumbu & Inglesi-Lotz, Roula, 2023. "Digital financial inclusion and energy and environment: Global positioning of Sub-Saharan African countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    34. Song, Yunxing & Gong, Yuanyuan & Song, Yan & Chen, Xiaohui, 2024. "Exploring the impact of digital inclusive finance on consumption volatility: Insights from household entrepreneurship and income volatility," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    35. Hai Thanh Nguyen, 2024. "How does the productivity of foreign-invested enterprises spill over to domestic firms in Vietnamese manufacturing?," Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 154-189, January.
    36. Sun, Liyang & Abraham, Sarah, 2021. "Estimating dynamic treatment effects in event studies with heterogeneous treatment effects," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 175-199.
    37. Zhiyuan Gao & Lianqing Li & Yu Hao, 2024. "Financial risk under the shock of global warming: Evidence from China," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 335-351, February.
    38. Lu, Hongyu & Cheng, Zhao, 2024. "Digital inclusive finance and corporate ESG performance: The moderating role of executives with financial backgrounds," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    39. Yang Liu & Chunyu Liu & Mi Zhou, 2021. "Does digital inclusive finance promote agricultural production for rural households in China? Research based on the Chinese family database (CFD)," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 13(2), pages 475-494, January.
    40. Le Sun & Congmou Zhu & Wen-Tsao Pan, 2022. "Impact of Digital Inclusive Finance on Rural High-Quality Development: Evidence from China," Discrete Dynamics in Nature and Society, Hindawi, vol. 2022, pages 1-13, August.
    41. Suhrab, Muhammad & Chen, Pinglu & Ullah, Atta, 2024. "Digital financial inclusion and income inequality nexus: Can technology innovation and infrastructure development help in achieving sustainable development goals?," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    42. Congyu Zhao & Farhad Taghizadeh-Hesary & Kangyin Dong & Xiucheng Dong, 2024. "Breaking carbon lock-in: the role of green financial inclusion for China," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 67(3), pages 564-593, February.
    43. Isaac K. Ofori & Francesco Figari & Nathanael Ojong, 2023. "Towards sustainability: The relationship between foreign direct investment, economic freedom and inclusive green growth," Working Papers 23/023, European Xtramile Centre of African Studies (EXCAS).
    44. Acheampong, Alex O., 2023. "Foreign direct investment and inclusive green growth in Africa: Energy efficiency contingencies and thresholds: Comment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    45. 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).
    46. World Bank, 2012. "Inclusive Green Growth : The Pathway to Sustainable Development," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6058, April.
    47. Xie, Rui & Fu, Wei & Yao, Siling & Zhang, Qi, 2021. "Effects of financial agglomeration on green total factor productivity in Chinese cities: Insights from an empirical spatial Durbin model," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    48. Le Sun & Congmou Zhu & Shaofeng Yuan & Lixia Yang & Shan He & Wuyan Li, 2022. "Exploring the Impact of Digital Inclusive Finance on Agricultural Carbon Emission Performance in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(17), pages 1-18, September.
    49. Zhang, Liming & Zhao, Yuting & Liu, Liang & Sun, Helin & Wang, Yue, 2025. "The spatial effects of green-innovation coupling and coordinated development from the perspective of digital inclusive finance: Evidence from China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    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. Niu, Niu & Ma, Junhua & Zheng, Deyuan & Lu, Yang & Zhang, Bin, 2025. "Extreme weather and the green transition of energy firms: The moderating effect of digital technology and digital inclusive finance," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).

    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. Yu Deng & Wenxia Zhang, 2023. "Modified CPT-TODIM method for evaluating the development level of digital inclusive finance under probabilistic hesitant fuzzy environment," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 18(3), pages 1-22, March.
    2. Dong, Xiaotian & Cui, Ruiqin & Bai, Xiaodong & Liu, Kexiao, 2024. "Can digital inclusive finance reduce household poverty? Evidence from the China household finance survey," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(PB).
    3. Tianjun Xu & Gangmin Weng & Wei Guo, 2024. "Coupling Coordination Analysis of China’s Tourism Inclusive Green Growth System and Its Dynamic Evolution," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(23), pages 1-18, November.
    4. Zhou, Yuanxiang & Liu, Huayan & Chen, Chan & Ma, Yingqi, 2025. "The impact of digital inclusive finance on green economic efficiency: Pathways to inclusive sustainability," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    5. Xu, Zhiyi & Yang, Jindi, 2025. "Impact of digital finance on rural industry revitalization," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    6. Gbolonyo, Emmanuel Y. & Ofori, Isaac K. & Ojong, Nathanael, 2024. "Does Economic Complexity Promote Inclusive Green Growth," EconStor Preprints 298785, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    7. Wang, Yao & Wu, Xuenan & Lin, Boqiang, 2025. "Empowering green households: How does digital finance influence household carbon footprints?," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    8. Hanjin Li & Hu Tian & Xinyu Liu & Jiansheng You, 2024. "Transitioning to low-carbon agriculture: the non-linear role of digital inclusive finance in China’s agricultural carbon emissions," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-14, December.
    9. Hongcheng Ling & Xiaohong Ling, 2025. "The impact of digital inclusive finance on enterprise digital technology innovation: empirical evidence from the Chinese manufacturing industry," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-19, December.
    10. Jiang, Yankun & Han, Guanghe & Yu, Dan, 2024. "Digital finance and agricultural green total factor productivity: the mediating role of digital village development," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 67(PB).
    11. Ofori, Pamela E. & Ofori, Isaac K. & Castelnovo, Paolo, 2024. "Effects of Innovation and Economic Freedom on Female Economic Inclusion," MPRA Paper 121244, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. 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).
    13. Lin, Weifen & Tong, Xinyue & Hu, Yao & Wang, Hui, 2024. "The flow of industrial lifeblood: The impact of the West-to-East oil transportation project on enterprise performance of China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    14. Zheng, Qianwen & Liu, Zilan & Zhang, Yunxiao, 2024. "Does public pension promote or inhibit enterprise total factor productivity? Evidence from China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 1690-1713.
    15. Ofori, Isaac K. & Freytag, Andreas & Asongu, Simplice A., 2024. "Economic globalisation and Africa's quest for greener and more inclusive growth: The missing link," International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    16. Feng, Qianbin & Ge, Ying & Zhao, Lexin, 2024. "Tax incentives and corporate digital transformation: Evidence from China’s accelerated depreciation policy," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    17. Wu, Yanxia & Zhang, Jie, 2025. "Digital inclusive finance and rural households’ economic resilience," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    18. Liu, Yulin & Li, Hebo & Wang, Cheng, 2025. "Digital financial inclusion and middle-income group vulnerability alleviation: Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    19. Ofori, Pamela E. & Ofori, Isaac K. & Castelnovo, Paolo, 2024. "Effects of Innovation and Economic Freedom on Female Economic Inclusion," EconStor Preprints 298786, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    20. Li, Ye & Lu, Honghong & Sun, Minxian, 2025. "Fulfillment of environmental responsibility, targeted reduction of inclusive finance and corporate NPD innovation," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).

    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:riibaf:v:76:y:2025:i:c:s0275531925000650. 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/ribaf .

    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.