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Green Bond Policy and Corporate ESG Performance
- 1 School of International Economics and Trade, Central University of Finance and Economics, Shahe Higher Education Park, Changping District, Beijing, China
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
In recent years, green bonds, as a new type of financial instrument, have gradually become an important tool for promoting corporate green transformation and improving environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. Based on data from A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2020, this paper empirically analyzes the impact of the 2015 green bond policy guidelines on corporate ESG ratings and its mechanisms using the difference-in-differences (DID) method. The study finds that the implementation of the green bond policy significantly improves corporate ESG ratings and indirectly promotes improvements in environmental protection, social responsibility, and governance structure by reducing financing costs. In addition, this paper reveals the heterogeneous effects of the green bond policy across different regions, types of enterprises, and industries. It finds that the policy has a more significant effect in economically developed regions and non-state-owned enterprises, while its impact is relatively weaker in the central and northeastern regions. Mechanism analysis shows that the reduction in financing costs plays an important mediating role in enhancing corporate ESG performance through the green bond policy. This paper provides empirical support for policymakers to optimize green finance policies and offers new perspectives for companies to use green bonds to improve their sustainable development capabilities.
Keywords
Green bonds, ESG ratings, Financing costs, Difference-in-differences method, Heterogeneity analysis
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Cite this article
Ge,H. (2025). Green Bond Policy and Corporate ESG Performance. Advances in Economics, Management and Political Sciences,156,40-52.
Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.
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Volume title: Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Business and Policy Studies
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