Green creates value: Evidence from China

This study explores whether and how the issuance of green bonds affects firm value in China from January 2015 to September 2020. Based on a multiperiod difference-in-differences model, we observe that firm value increases with the issuance of green bonds, but this positive effect is unsustainable and weakens gradually. The heterogeneity analysis suggests that the expected positive effect of green bond issuance on firm value is highly evident in non-state-owned firms, small firms, firms in green finance pilot zones, and firms in the eastern region. Moreover, we explore the mechanism in terms of financing condition, government support, and green investment and find that the financing condition, tax burden, and government subsidy of firms improve following the issuance of green bonds. However, green investments erode firm profits, which may lead to the unsustainability of the driving effect of green bond issuance on firm value. Further analysis reveals that when the volume of the green bonds issued by firms increases by one standard deviation, firm value increases by 0.032 units on average.     

政府补贴和国有参股对参与PPP企业外部融资的影响

政府补贴和国有资本参股是政府参与PPP(政府和社会资本合作)的两种主要方式。本文借助一个资本具有外部性的一般均衡模型来分析这两种方式对企业外部融资的影响机制,并进行经验验证。理论分析发现,国有参股的担保效应增加了项目公司对高杠杆的需求,提升了金融中介发放贷款的意愿,使金融中介接受更低的借款利率。政府补贴不影响项目公司与金融中介之间的借贷合约。项目公司外部融资所受影响会进一步传导至参与PPP的企业。因此,国有参股增加稳态时的企业杠杆率,降低借款利率;政府补贴则不影响杠杆率和利率。实证部分通过整合2014-2018年财政部PPP项目库数据和2010-2018年上市公司财务数据,借助PSM-DID分析发现,国有参股程度显著降低参与PPP项目的上市公司的借贷成本并提升其杠杆率,但政府补贴支出没有明显作用,印证了模型结论。此外,市场化程度更高的地区,国有参股程度对参与企业外部融资的影响程度更小。本文研究对PPP模式下如何减少政府债务风险以及控制债务风险向企业转移具有一定的参考意义。     

绿色信贷政策能够促进企业绿色创新吗？——基于政策效应分化的视角

本文实证检验了绿色信贷政策影响重污染企业和节能环保企业绿色创新的不同效应。研究发现,绿色信贷政策对绿色创新的影响在两类企业之间存在分化:政策能更有效提升节能环保企业的绿色创新,对重污染企业绿色创新的促进作用相对有限。从银行信贷决策视角看,政策效应的分化一定程度上源于政策对信贷融资的影响存在差异:政策使重污染企业融资规模降低、融资成本提升的同时,促进了节能环保企业融资规模的增加。从企业绿色行为决策视角看,政策效应的分化一定程度上源于政策对企业绿色行为的影响存在差异:重污染企业采用“低成本策略”,节能环保企业则采用“竞争优势策略”。绿色信贷政策的效应还受企业所有权性质、现金持有以及企业规模的影响,而竞争性的银行业结构和政府补助有助于发挥政策对重污染企业绿色创新的促进作用。本文研究对评估绿色信贷政策的经济效果,推动政策进一步精准发力具有一定参考意义。     

Catering to investors through capital expenditures: Testing assets substitution problem around financing

We test the catering theory, which describes how investor preferences might influence individual firms' investment financing decisions. To the best of our knowledge, our study may well be the first that directly connects catering with asset substitution to contrast the magnitude of catering by bondholders and shareholders. And indeed, it is interesting to find that although catering behavior is found to exist among both corporate bond and seasoned equity offering (SEO) managers, the coexistence of both appears to offset the abnormal investment phenomena of either underinvestment or overinvestment. The study results further reveal that firms engage in overinvestment when catering to conversion holders of existing convertible bonds. Taken together, we find that support for the asset substitution and abnormal investment argument is strong from a stockholder–bondholder conflict.     

Technological change,completeness of financing microstructures,and impact on well-being and income inequality

Financing microstructures are increasingly recognized as critical for promoting financial inclusion and improving overall well-being in developing countries. In practice, the digital transformation in finance has the potential to accelerate the optimal functioning of financing microstructures, including households' access to microfinance and microinsurance. Increased access to finance can lead to a reduction in income inequality and overall well-being for households. This paper investigates the impact of access to digital finance and financing microstructures on household well-being and the reduction of income inequality. To achieve this, we use a combination of propensity score matching, double difference, and smooth instrumental quantile regression as estimation methods with two periods of survey data. Specifically, the paper uses the FinScope consumer data (2016) and the Harmonized Living Standards Measurement Study (2018) from Togo in a comparative perspective. The results suggest that access to both digital finance and financing microstructure is a cultural game-changer that significantly improves overall household well-being and contributes to reducing income inequality.     

技术市场发展、实体企业金融化与创新质量

以2005—2020年中国A股上市企业为样本，实证研究实体企业金融化对创新质量的影响效应和机制，重点关注技术市场发展对上述影响效应和机制的调节作用。结果表明，实体企业金融化对创新质量具有负向影响效应，技术市场发展能够强化这一影响效应，在技术市场发展较快的地区，实体企业金融化对创新质量的负向影响效应更加显著，融资约束和全要素生产率是实体企业金融化影响企业创新质量的有效机制；技术市场发展的调节效应主要作用于影响机制的前半路径，在技术市场发展较快的地区，实体企业金融化对融资约束的缓解效应较弱，对全要素生产率的负向影响效应更强；实体企业金融化对创新质量的影响效应在产品市场竞争、是否为家族企业和银企关系方面存在异质性，当产品市场竞争更激烈、银企关系较差和企业为非家族企业时，实体企业金融化对创新质量的负向影响更显著。     

ESG disclosure and technological innovation capabilities of the Chinese listed companies

The main objective of this study is to explore how ESG disclosure effectively promotes technological innovation capabilities (TIC) and also in different industries (green vs. high-tech). Further, examine the role of financing constraint (FC) in the relationship between the ESG disclosure and TIC. We employed the panel regression model, Causal step approach, Bootstrap mediation effect test, 2SLS, and GMM model. We used Bloomberg’s ESG disclosure score of China’s A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2019 (1); we found that the ESG disclosure has a significant relationship with corporate innovation indicators (OTI, STI, NSTI) and play a significant role in promoting TIC at different levels of corporate innovation (2) ESG disclosure of non-green (high-tech) industry is more effectively promote TIC than green (non-high tech) industry (3) ESG disclosure can promote corporate innovation by reducing the level of corporate financing constraints, and FC has a partial intermediary role between ESG and TIC.