Social Credit Environment and Corporate Default Risk: A Quasi-natural Experiment Based on Social Credit System Model City Construction
FAN Run1, ZHAI Shuping1, SU Ye2
1. School of Accounting, Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, Tianjin 300222, China; 2. School of Economics and Management, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot 010021, China
Abstract Taking the A-share listed companies from 2008 to 2020 as research samples, this study utilizes the construction of social credit system demonstration cities to portray the social credit environment and uses it as a quasi-natural experiment to investigate the impact of social credit environment on corporate default risk. The study shows that a good social credit environment can significantly reduce the default risk of enterprises. The mechanism test reveals that a good social credit environment can inhibit corporate default risk by alleviating financing constraints and reducing agency costs. Further research has found that in situations where the company has lower asset collateralization capacity, lower board independence, better regional legal environment, and higher economic policy uncertainty, a good social credit environment can more effectively reduce corporate default risk. The research findings not only enrich the study on the influence of corporate default risk but also verify the policy effectiveness of constructing social credit system demonstration cities. It provides empirical evidence for government departments to further promote the construction of social credit system and prevent and mitigate corporate risks.
FAN Run,ZHAI Shuping,SU Ye. Social Credit Environment and Corporate Default Risk: A Quasi-natural Experiment Based on Social Credit System Model City Construction. Economic Survey, 2024, 41(1): 0120.
2024, Vol. 41 
