Volume 65, Issue 2 pp. 1987-2012
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Does bank digitalisation reduce corporate agency costs? Evidence from China

Shuxian He

Corresponding Author

Shuxian He

School of Finance, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China

Correspondence

Shuxian He, School of Finance, Renmin University of China, No. 59 Zhongguancun Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100872, China.

Email: [email protected]

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Xin Sheng

Xin Sheng

China CITIC Financial Asset Management, Beijing, China

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First published: 19 January 2025

Abstract

This paper explores the impact of bank digitalisation on corporate agency costs. The findings show that: (i) bank digitalisation significantly reduces agency costs by improving banks' monitoring capabilities; (ii) financial regulation further lowers agency costs for firms engaging with more digitised banks; and (iii) the effect between bank digitalisation and corporate agency costs is weaker in state-owned enterprises and those with short-sighted management, but stronger in firms with greater financing constraints and shorter listing durations. These results provide new evidence of bank digitalisation's positive impact on the real economy and highlight the benefits of financial regulation in China.

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