Does Green Bond Promote Corporate ESG Performance? Evidence from China

The purpose of this study is to investigate the ESG performance of companies that issue green bonds.We select non-financial listed companies as samples from 2012 to 2020 and construct a quasi-natural experiment. Empirical analysis is conducted using a difference-in-differences model to examine the impact and mechanism of issuing green bonds on corporate ESG performance.The research findings reveal that the issuance of green bonds has a significant positive effect on the overall level of corporate ESG performance.This effect is mainly driven by improvements in environmental performance and social benefits.Further analysis indicates that the impact of green bonds on ESG performance is more pronounced for companies with high market positions.Additionally,non-state-owned enterprises, non-polluting enterprises,and enterprises operating in environments with higher regulatory intensity experience greater improvements in their ESG performance through green bond issuance.The paper provides a new perspective for the green transformation and sustainable development of market players