Digital Inclusive Finance and the Shadow Banking of Non-Financial Enterprises

Abstract

In consideration of the macro background of guarding against diverting out of the real economy and the rapid development of digital inclusive finance, this study selects the A-share listed companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges from 2011 to 2019 as samples to empirically investigate the impact of digital finance on the shadow banking of non-financial enterprises. The research finds that digital finance suppresses the expansion of shadow banking business scale in non-financial enterprises. Further examination reveals that the impact of digital finance development on the shadow banking of non-financial enterprises is mainly achieved through alleviating financing constraints and reducing financing costs. Heterogeneity tests indicate that the inhibitory effect of digital finance on non-financial enterprise shadow banking is more pronounced in companies with smaller scales, poorer information disclosure quality, and higher management expense ratios. Additionally, this inhibitory effect is primarily generated by the depth of digital finance development. This study provides empirical evidence and decision-making references to clarify the inhibition of shadow banking by digital finance and guide the development of digital finance.