IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i13p10309-d1183034.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Financial Technology Development and Green Total Factor Productivity

Author

Listed:
  • Wentao Hu

    (The School of Economics, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China)

  • Xiaoxiao Li

    (School of Mathematics and Statistics, Shangqiu Normal University, Shangqiu 476000, China)

Abstract

As a new product resulting from the deep integration of the financial industry and artificial intelligence (AI) technology, financial technology (fintech) has a significant impact on the progress of green total factor productivity (GTFP). Based on city-level data from 2011 to 2021 in China, this paper used the super-efficiency SBM model with embedded non-expected output and the GML index method to measure the GTFP levels of 283 prefecture-level and above cities and to empirically test the impact of fintech on GTFP and its underlying mechanisms. The empirical results showed that the development of fintech had significantly promoted the improvement of GTFP, and the effect was dynamically stable. Specifically, fintech had a stronger and more significant incentive effect on GTFP in its more mature stage of development. By decomposing fintech into two dimensions, it was found that the depth of fintech development had a stronger impact on GTFP with dynamic superimposed characteristics. Mechanism analysis showed that fintech development can drive the progress of GTFP by improving resource allocation efficiency, optimizing human capital, and incentivizing technological innovation channels. Moderating effect analysis revealed that financial regulation and environmental regulation have a positive moderating effect on the baseline relationship between fintech and GTFP. Further research found that the moderating effects of financial regulation and environmental regulation exhibit significant nonlinear threshold characteristics, and the driving effect of fintech on GTFP can only reach its maximum when both are within the optimal range. This study provides valuable insights for the development and optimization of fintech, the green transformation of the real economy, and high-quality development.

Suggested Citation

  • Wentao Hu & Xiaoxiao Li, 2023. "Financial Technology Development and Green Total Factor Productivity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-28, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:13:p:10309-:d:1183034
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/13/10309/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/13/10309/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stefan Ambec & Mark A. Cohen & Stewart Elgie & Paul Lanoie, 2013. "The Porter Hypothesis at 20: Can Environmental Regulation Enhance Innovation and Competitiveness?," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 7(1), pages 2-22, January.
    2. Daron Acemoglu & Philippe Aghion & Leonardo Bursztyn & David Hemous, 2012. "The Environment and Directed Technical Change," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(1), pages 131-166, February.
    3. Marco Manacorda & Andrea Tesei, 2020. "Liberation Technology: Mobile Phones and Political Mobilization in Africa," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 88(2), pages 533-567, March.
    4. Dong-hyun Oh, 2010. "A global Malmquist-Luenberger productivity index," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 34(3), pages 183-197, December.
    5. Chang-Tai Hsieh & Peter J. Klenow, 2009. "Misallocation and Manufacturing TFP in China and India," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 124(4), pages 1403-1448.
    6. Yingying Zhou & Yaru Xu & Chuanzhe Liu & Zhuoqing Fang & Xinyue Fu & Mingzhao He, 2019. "The Threshold Effect of China’s Financial Development on Green Total Factor Productivity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-23, July.
    7. Lei Jiang & Xingyu Chen & Yang Jiang & Bo Zhang, 2023. "Exploring the Direct and Spillover Effects of Aging on Green Total Factor Productivity in China: A Spatial Econometric Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-19, April.
    8. Seo, Myung Hwan & Shin, Yongcheol, 2016. "Dynamic panels with threshold effect and endogeneity," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 195(2), pages 169-186.
    9. N. Gregory Mankiw & David Romer & David N. Weil, 1992. "A Contribution to the Empirics of Economic Growth," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 107(2), pages 407-437.
    10. Lee, Hsiao-Hui & Yang, S. Alex & Kim, Kijin, 2019. "The Role of Fintech in Mitigating Information Friction in Supply Chain Finance," ADB Economics Working Paper Series 599, Asian Development Bank.
    11. Bunea, Sinziana & Kogan, Benjamin & Stolin, David, 2016. "Banks Versus FinTech: At Last, it's Official," Journal of Financial Transformation, Capco Institute, vol. 44, pages 122-131.
    12. Hugo A. Hopenhayn, 2014. "Firms, Misallocation, and Aggregate Productivity: A Review," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 735-770, August.
    13. Guoqun Ma & Danyang Lv & Yuxi Luo & Tuanbiao Jiang, 2022. "Environmental Regulation, Urban-Rural Income Gap and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-22, July.
    14. Färe, Rolf & Grosskopf, Shawna & Pasurka, Carl A., 2007. "Environmental production functions and environmental directional distance functions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 32(7), pages 1055-1066.
    15. David N. Weil & Oded Galor, 2000. "Population, Technology, and Growth: From Malthusian Stagnation to the Demographic Transition and Beyond," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(4), pages 806-828, September.
    16. Tone, Kaoru, 2001. "A slacks-based measure of efficiency in data envelopment analysis," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 130(3), pages 498-509, May.
    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. Jones, C.I., 2016. "The Facts of Economic Growth," Handbook of Macroeconomics, in: J. B. Taylor & Harald Uhlig (ed.), Handbook of Macroeconomics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 3-69, Elsevier.
    2. Xiaocang Xu & Xiuquan Huang & Jun Huang & Xin Gao & Linhong Chen, 2019. "Spatial-Temporal Characteristics of Agriculture Green Total Factor Productivity in China, 1998–2016: Based on More Sophisticated Calculations of Carbon Emissions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-16, October.
    3. Jiangfeng Hu & Zhao Wang & Qinghua Huang & Xiaoqin Zhang, 2019. "Environmental Regulation Intensity, Foreign Direct Investment, and Green Technology Spillover—An Empirical Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-15, May.
    4. Lin, Boqiang & Du, Kerui, 2015. "Energy and CO2 emissions performance in China's regional economies: Do market-oriented reforms matter?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 113-124.
    5. Yongyi Cheng & Liheng Lu & Tianyuan Shao & Manhong Shen & Laiqun Jin, 2018. "Decomposition Analysis of Factors Affecting Changes in Industrial Wastewater Emission Intensity in China: Based on a SSBM-GMI Approach," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-23, December.
    6. Yongyi Cheng & Tianyuan Shao & Huilin Lai & Manhong Shen & Yi Li, 2019. "Total-Factor Eco-Efficiency and Its Influencing Factors in the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-14, October.
    7. Etro, Federico, 2017. "Research in economics and macroeconomics," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(3), pages 373-383.
    8. Huiling Liu & Jianhua Zhang & Hongyun Huang & Haitao Wu & Yu Hao, 2023. "Environmental good exports and green total factor productivity: Lessons from China," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(3), pages 1681-1703, June.
    9. Charles I. Jones & Paul M. Romer, 2010. "The New Kaldor Facts: Ideas, Institutions, Population, and Human Capital," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(1), pages 224-245, January.
    10. Arabi, Behrouz & Munisamy, Susila & Emrouznejad, Ali, 2015. "A new slacks-based measure of Malmquist–Luenberger index in the presence of undesirable outputs," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 29-37.
    11. Meiling Wang & Silu Pang & Ikram Hmani & Ilham Hmani & Cunfang Li & Zhengxia He, 2021. "Towards sustainable development: How does technological innovation drive the increase in green total factor productivity?," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 217-227, January.
    12. Kounetas, Konstantinos & Zervopoulos, Panagiotis D., 2019. "A cross-country evaluation of environmental performance: Is there a convergence-divergence pattern in technology gaps?," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 273(3), pages 1136-1148.
    13. Liu, Wei & Gao, Lixiang & Song, Hang & Huang, Mingdong, 2021. "Factor market distortion, technology change, and green growth in the Chinese civil airline industry," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    14. Wang, Zhaohua & Feng, Chao, 2015. "Sources of production inefficiency and productivity growth in China: A global data envelopment analysis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 380-389.
    15. Emrouznejad, Ali & Yang, Guo-liang, 2016. "CO2 emissions reduction of Chinese light manufacturing industries: A novel RAM-based global Malmquist–Luenberger productivity index," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 397-410.
    16. Yang, Zhenbing & Shao, Shuai & Fan, Meiting & Yang, Lili, 2021. "Wage distortion and green technological progress: A directed technological progress perspective," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    17. Hong Yu & Jianmin Zhang & Ning Xu, 2023. "Does National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone Construction Help Improve Urban Green Total Factor Productivity? A Policy Assessment from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-16, April.
    18. Guihuan Yan & Liming Jiang & Chongqing Xu, 2022. "How Environmental Regulation Affects Industrial Green Total Factor Productivity in China: The Role of Internal and External Channels," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-14, October.
    19. Song, Malin & Zhu, Shuai & Wang, Jianlin & Zhao, Jiajia, 2020. "Share green growth: Regional evaluation of green output performance in China," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 219(C), pages 152-163.
    20. Ruomei Xu & Yanrui Wu & Chen Chen, 2022. "Agricultural green efficiency and productivity incorporating waste recycling," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(3), pages 635-660, September.

    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:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:13:p:10309-:d:1183034. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.