Knowledge Agora



Scientific Article details

Title Digital Finance and Green Development: Characteristics, Mechanisms, and Empirical Evidences
ID_Doc 62071
Authors Zhuang, RL; Mi, KN; Zhi, ML; Zhang, CY
Title Digital Finance and Green Development: Characteristics, Mechanisms, and Empirical Evidences
Year 2022
Published International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health, 19, 24
DOI 10.3390/ijerph192416940
Abstract As the emergence of digital finance is relatively short, research results on digital finance mainly focus on products, services, coverage, policies, etc. The mechanism and role of digital finance in influencing green development are still lacking attention. In the above context, this paper used spatial analysis methods to describe spatiotemporal characteristics in detail, and empirically tested the mechanism and path of digital finance affecting green development through spatial econometric models and intermediary models. The results showed that: (1) During the study period, digital finance and green development have been improved to varying degrees, but the inter-provincial differences are still obvious. (2) The spatial trends of digital finance and green development are similar, and the overall performance is "high in the east, low in the west, high in the south, and low in the north". (3) The empirical tests found that digital finance is an effective force to reduce energy consumption per unit of GDP and improve the level of green development. It validates Hypothesis 1. Meanwhile, the Heterogeneity effect is noteworthy due to different regions, types, and levels. (4) The promotion of green development by digital finance is mainly concentrated in the local region and has not yet shown a significant green spillover effect for surrounding areas. It validates Hypothesis 2. (5) Energy structure, industrial upgrading, and technological progress are three paths for digital finance affecting green development. Hypothesis 3 is verified. Finally, the innovation of this paper lies in the design of the research framework, diversity of research methods, and policy implications. The main contribution is to enrich and expand the environmental finance theory and provide detailed empirical evidence. In addition, we put forward effective measures and suggestions including local governments, financial institutions, and enterprises based on the empirical results. Local governments should pay attention to policy implementation and operation effects, financial institutions constantly need to strengthen the supply of advanced digital financial products and services, and enterprises should attach importance to the use of digital financial tools to achieve green and low-carbon development in the future.
Author Keywords digital finance; green development; energy structure; industrial upgrading; technological progress; China
Index Keywords Index Keywords
Document Type Other
Open Access Open Access
Source Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED); Social Science Citation Index (SSCI)
EID WOS:000900965300001
WoS Category Environmental Sciences; Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Research Area Environmental Sciences & Ecology; Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
PDF https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/24/16940/pdf?version=1671676470
Similar atricles
Scroll