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Entrepreneurial finance and sustainability: Do institutional investors impact the ESG performance of SMEs?

Author

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  • Drobetz, Wolfgang
  • El Ghoul, Sadok
  • Guedhami, Omrane
  • Hackmann, Jan P.
  • Momtaz, Paul P.

Abstract

Institutional investors improve the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Our difference-in-differences framework shows that the backing from private equity and venture capital funds leads to an increase in SMEs’ externally validated ESG scores compared to their matched non-investor-backed peers. Consistent with “ESG-as-insurance” theory, the ESG performance of SMEs with a higher probability of failure is more likely to benefit from the backing of institutional investors. This positive effect is heterogeneous; while SMEs with high ex-ante ESG performance further improve their ESG performance following institutional investor backing, SMEs with low ex-ante ESG performance are unlikely to implement any improvements. Entrepreneurial finance seems to help sustainable entrepreneurs transform into “sustainability champions,” while neglecting the betterment of non-sustainable SMEs.

Suggested Citation

  • Drobetz, Wolfgang & El Ghoul, Sadok & Guedhami, Omrane & Hackmann, Jan P. & Momtaz, Paul P., 2024. "Entrepreneurial finance and sustainability: Do institutional investors impact the ESG performance of SMEs?," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 22(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jobuve:v:22:y:2024:i:c:s2352673424000507
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbvi.2024.e00498
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    Keywords

    Entrepreneurial finance; Venture capital; Private equity; Sustainability; Environmental; social; and governance (ESG); Corporate social responsibility (CSR);
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G24 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Investment Banking; Venture Capital; Brokerage
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • M13 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - New Firms; Startups
    • Q01 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - General - - - Sustainable Development
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth

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