Green Finance and New Quality Productive Forces: Promotion or Inhibition? From the Perspectives of Technological Innovation and Environmental Concern

Mao Xiaomeng, Wang Renzeng

Journal of Shanghai University of Finance and Economics Vol. 26, Issue 05, pp. 30 - 45 (2024)  DOI:10.16538/j.cnki.jsufe.2024.05.003

Summary

New quality productive forces is the core force to promote high-quality development, As a key part of the inclusive financial system, whether green finance can become an important starting point in the formation of new quality productive forces deserves attention. Based on the data of 30 provinces (municipalities and autonomous regions) in China from 2011 to 2022, this paper firstly constructs an index system of new quality productive forces development from the four dimensions of basic productive forces, scientific and technological productive forces, green productive forces, and digital productive forces, and uses the entropy weight TOPSIS method to measure the index. Secondly, from the perspectives of technological innovation and environmental concern, the influence mechanism of green finance on new quality productive forces is discussed. Finally, the heterogeneous effect of green finance on the development of new quality productive forces is investigated from the aspects of geographical location, economic development level, financial development environment, and environmental regulation. The study finds that green finance can help promote the development of new quality productive forces. In terms of dimensions, green finance has a significant effect on green productive forces and digital productive forces, but not on basic productive forces and scientific and technological productive forces. Mechanism testing shows that green finance can promote the development of new quality productive forces by promoting the quantitative and qualitative improvement of technological innovation and increasing the environmental concern of the government and the public. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the driving effect of green finance on new quality productive forces is more intense in eastern areas and areas with a high level of economic development. Strengthening financial supervision, developing Fintech, and implementing environmental regulations are conducive to strengthening the promotion effect of green finance on the development of new quality productive forces. Moreover, compared with command-based environmental regulations, market-based environmental regulations have a stronger positive regulatory effect on green finance’s promotion of new quality productive forces. The conclusions of this paper provide empirical evidence for green finance to better support the development of new quality productive forces.

Keywords

green finance; new quality productive forces; technological innovation; environmental concern