Institutional Innovation in Opening-Up and the Governance of Corporate Greenwashing: Evidence from China’s Pilot Free Trade Zones
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65455/3ke7f284Keywords:
Free Trade Pilot Zone, Greenwashing Behavior, Geographic Information System, International Supply Chain, Government–Enterprise CollaborationAbstract
Under China’s “dual circulation” development paradigm, whether FTZ policies can promote truthful environmental disclosure and curb corporate greenwashing is a key issue. Using GIS technology to precisely identify listed firms and subsidiaries located within FTZs, this study applies a difference-in-differences model to examine the impact of FTZ policies on greenwashing. The results show that FTZ policies significantly reduce greenwashing, with stronger effects for firms having more subsidiaries, higher subsidiary shares, and greater registered capital in FTZs. Mechanism analyses indicate that improved financing access, strengthened government–enterprise green collaboration, and deeper integration into international supply chains—particularly through trade facilitation reforms—are the main channels. No significant spillover effects are found for non-FTZ firms in the same city, underscoring the importance of precise GIS-based identification. These findings provide robust evidence on how FTZ policies curb corporate greenwashing and support firms’ participation in sustainable global development.References
[1]LI Q, XIAO Z. Heterogeneous Environmental Regulation Tools and Incentives for Corporate Green Innovation: Evidence from Green Patents of Listed Companies. Economic Research Journal, 2020, (9).
[2]LI Z. Will Users Abandon “More Talk Than Action” Environmental Disclosure? The World Economy, 2018, (12).
[3]BARNEY J. Resource-Based Theories of Competitive Advantage: A Ten-Year Retrospective on the Resource-Based View. Journal of Management, 2001, 27(6): 643–650.
[4]PFEFFER J, SALANCIK G. External Control of Organizations—Resource Dependence Perspective. London, UK: Routledge, 2015.
[5]FALAVIGNA G, IPPOLITI R. Financial Constraints, Investments, and Environmental Strategies: An Empirical Analysis of Judicial Barriers. Business Strategy and the Environment, 2022, 31(5): 2002–2018.
[6]PENG Y, HUANG Z. Causes and Governance of Economic “De-Realization”: Understanding the 19th CPC Financial Reform. The World Economy, 2018, (9).
[7]ZHOU X Y, CALDECOTT B, HOEPNER A G F, et al. Bank Green Lending and Credit Risk: An Empirical Analysis of China’s Green Credit Policy. Business Strategy and the Environment, 2022, 31(4): 1623–1640.
[8]XIANG H, HE K, YU Y. Establishment of FTZs, Trade Development, and Capital Flows: Evidence from Shanghai FTZ. Financial Research, 2016, (10).
[9]HAN R, BO F. Effects of Free Trade Zones on Capital Flows: Evidence from a Quasi-Natural Experiment. Journal of International Finance, 2019, (7).
[10]ELLINGSEN T, JOHANNESSON M. Pride and Prejudice: The Human Side of Incentive Theory. American Economic Review, 2008, 98(3): 990–1008.
[11]ZHENG M, CHANG Z. Green Low-Carbon Transformation and Corporate ESG Responsibility: Quasi-Natural Experiment Based on Low-Carbon City Pilots. Economic Management Research, 2023, (7).
[12]HART S L. A Natural-Resource-Based View of the Firm. The Academy of Management Review, 1995, 20(4): 986–1014.
[13]SCHERER A G, PALAZZO G. The New Political Role of Business in a Globalized World: A Review of a New Perspective on CSR and Its Implications for the Firm, Governance, and Democracy. Journal of Management Studies, 2012, 32(2): 117–118.
[14]STOSS L. Global Climate Change: An Issue That Mandates Government or Corporate Social Responsibility. Journal of International Business and Law, 2018, 17(2): 5.
[15]ZHOU J, LIU Y. Institutional Embedding, Green Technological Innovation, and Carbon Reduction of Entrepreneurial Firms. China Population, Resources and Environment, 2021, (6).
[16]TANG S, XIE X. How Equity-Holding Financial Institutions Serve the Real Economy: Perspective of Supply Chain Embedding Effect. China Industrial Economics, 2021, (11).
[17]GRANOVETTER M. Economic Action and Social Structure: The Problem of Embeddedness. American Journal of Sociology, 1985, 91(3): 481–510.
[18]DYER J H, SINGH H. The Relational View: Cooperative Strategy and Sources of Interorganizational Competitive Advantage. Academy of Management Review, 1998, 23(4): 660–679.
[19]SOBRERO M, ROBERTS E B. The Trade-off Between Efficiency and Learning in Interorganizational Relationships for Product Development. Management Science, 2001, 47(4): 493–511.
[20]LI Q, LI Y, ZHANG Y. Information Spillover Effect of Enterprise Digital Transformation: Evidence from Supply Chain Perspective. China Industrial Economics, 2023, (7).
[21]MARQUIS C, BATTILANA J. Acting Globally but Thinking Locally: The Enduring Influence of Local Communities on Organizations. Research in Organizational Behavior, 2009, 29: 283–302.
[22]XIE Q. Trade Facilitation, Trade Development, and China’s Reform Practices. Economic Dynamics, 2018, (1).
[23]KANG J, ZHENG W. Trade Creation Effect of Inland Free Trade Zones in China: Expanding Imports or Boosting Exports? Journal of International Trade, 2021, (2).
[24]XIE H, LÜ X. Responsible International Investment: ESG and Chinese OFDI. Economic Research Journal, 2022, (3).
[25]SHAIKH I. Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Practice and Firm Performance: An International Evidence. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 2022, 23(1): 218–237.
[26]GU H, YANG S, CHENG C. The Impact of Supply Chain Finance on Firm Internationalization from the Perspective of Supply Chain Spillover. Journal of International Finance, 2023, (3).
[27]SU D, LIU Z. Does Green Finance Reform Affect Corporate Green Performance and Greenwashing Risk? Journal of International Finance, 2023, (4).
[28]XIE X, HAN Y. How Domestic Manufacturing Firms Achieve “Gorgeous Transformation” in Green Innovation: A Multiple Case Study Based on Attention-Based View. Management World, 2022, (3).
[29]MAO Y, KORABAYEV R, WEI Z. Construction of a Green Full-Industry Chain Evaluation Index System: Empirical Evidence. Sun Yat-sen University Journal (Social Science Edition), 2020, (2).
[30]TIAN Z, CHEN C. Construction and Optimization of Modern Enterprise Green Supply Chain Management Model. Science & Technology Management Research, 2007, (10).
[31]CHEN Z, XIONG R. Comparative Advantage and Industrial Policy Effects: Evidence from a Quasi-Experiment in Export Processing Zones. Management World, 2015, (8).
[32]BERTRAND M, MULLAINATHAN S. Enjoying the Quiet Life? Corporate Governance and Managerial Preferences. Journal of Political Economy, 2003, 111(5): 1043–1075.
[33]GE P, HAN Y, WU X. Measurement and Evaluation of the Coupling and Coordination Between Innovation and Economic Development in China. Quantitative & Technical Economics Research, 2020, (10).
[34]XIAO H, SHEN H, ZHOU Y. Client Enterprise Digitalization, Supplier ESG Performance, and Supply Chain Sustainability. Economic Research Journal, 2024, (3).
[35]YANG Z, TANG S, LI Z. Capital Market Information Disclosure, Relational Contracts, and Supply-Demand Bullwhip Effect: Evidence from Supply Chain Information Spillovers. Management World, 2020, (7).
[36]LI W, LIU H, LONG Z. Enterprise Digital Transformation and Supply Chain Geographic Distribution. Quantitative & Technical Economics Research, 2023, (8).
[37]CHENG C, TIAN X, XU Z. Supply Chain Finance and Enterprise Efficiency Upgrading: Evidence from Listed Company Announcements and Local Policy Documents. Financial Research, 2023, (6).
[38]JIANG L, LU Y, ZHANG G. Construction of Free Trade Zones and China’s Export Behavior. China Industrial Economics, 2021, (8).
[39]WANG A, FANG Y, YU B. China’s Free Trade Zones and Regional Economic Growth: Comparison of Transmission Paths and Driving Mechanisms. Finance & Trade Economics, 2020, (8).
[40]FANG Y, LIU J. Can the Establishment of Free Trade Zones Promote Enterprise Innovation? Evidence from GEM-Listed Companies. Journal of International Finance, 2021, (9).
[41]WANG H, YAN G. Does the Establishment of FTZs Alleviate Corporate Financing Constraints? Evidence from Listed Companies. Journal of Nanjing Audit University, 2023, (3).
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 The Author(s). Economics and Data Science published by CSTDP
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.