Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2024.2341219
How digital finance affects the financial asset allocation of brick-and-mortar businesses
Zhao Lu
Wang Zhitao
Li Minghuan
Deng Yajun
Niu Runkai
Abstract
The recent integration of digital technology and financial services
has given rise to the newly emerging modality of digital finance.
However, does digital finance improve the efficiency of financial
services while influencing the investment behavior of brick-andmortar
businesses? With the help of the data about Chinese listed
companies, this paper uses multiple regression analysis, instrumental
variables, and other methods to empirically test whether and
how digital finance affects the financial asset allocation decisions
of brick-and-mortar enterprises. The findings suggest that digital
finance has a galvanizing effect on financial asset allocation.
However, this effect mainly stems from the fact that firms allocate
more illiquid financial assets and has a dampening effect on liquid
financial assets. Path analysis shows that easing financing constraints
is a causal pathway through which digital finance dampens
firms’ liquid financial asset allocation. Moreover, rising risk
exposure levels partially mediate the stimulus of digital finance,
motivating firms to allocate illiquid financial assets. This paper contributes
to the research on the economic consequences of digital
finance and provides policy recommendations on how digital
finance can better serve the real economy.
Keywords
Digital finance; brick-andmortar businesses; liquid financial assets; illiquid financial assets; financial asset allocation
Hrčak ID:
321747
URI
Publication date:
6.6.2024.
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