Do FinTech Acquisitions Affect Banks' ESG Performance? Evidence from Global M&As

IF 6.1 2区经济学 Q1 BUSINESS, FINANCE

Journal of International Financial Markets Institutions & Money Pub Date : 2025-10-09 DOI:10.1016/j.intfin.2025.102229

Antonella Francesca Cicchiello , Cristian Foroni , Stefano Monferrà , Giuseppe Torluccio

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Abstract

This study investigates how mergers and acquisitions (M&A) involving FinTech companies influence the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance of acquiring banks. Using a global sample of 105 M&A deals completed by banks worldwide between 2009 and 2023, our findings indicate that FinTech acquisitions tend to enhance banks’ ESG performance. However, this effect is not immediately observable, manifesting only in the fifth year post-acquisition. To refine the analysis, we match banks that engaged in FinTech acquisitions with similar banks that did not, controlling for pre-acquisition characteristics. This approach reveals a positive and significant effect on environmental (E) and overall ESG scores starting from the third year, with social (S) scores showing significant improvement as early as the first year post-acquisition.

These findings contribute to the understanding of how FinTech M&As shape the ESG performance of traditional banks. The results also provide valuable insights for bank managers, policymakers, and financial regulators, emphasizing the role of FinTech acquisitions in advancing sustainability within the banking sector.

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金融科技收购是否影响银行的ESG绩效？来自全球并购的证据

本研究探讨了涉及金融科技公司的并购如何影响收购银行的环境、社会和治理（ESG）绩效。通过对2009年至2023年间全球银行完成的105宗并购交易的全球样本分析，我们的研究结果表明，金融科技收购往往会提高银行的ESG绩效。然而，这种效果并不是立即可见的，只有在收购后的第五年才会显现出来。为了完善分析，我们将从事金融科技收购的银行与没有从事金融科技收购的类似银行进行了匹配，并控制了收购前的特征。这种方法显示，从第三年开始，对环境(E)和整体ESG得分有积极而显著的影响，社交(S)得分早在习得后的第一年就显示出显著的改善。这些发现有助于理解金融科技并购如何影响传统银行的ESG绩效。研究结果还为银行经理、政策制定者和金融监管机构提供了有价值的见解，强调了金融科技收购在促进银行业可持续性方面的作用。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of International Financial Markets Institutions & Money Multiple-

CiteScore

6.60

自引率

10.00%

发文量

142

期刊介绍： International trade, financing and investments, and the related cash and credit transactions, have grown at an extremely rapid pace in recent years. The international monetary system has continued to evolve to accommodate the need for foreign-currency denominated transactions and in the process has provided opportunities for its ongoing observation and study. The purpose of the Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions & Money is to publish rigorous, original articles dealing with the international aspects of financial markets, institutions and money. Theoretical/conceptual and empirical papers providing meaningful insights into the subject areas will be considered. The following topic areas, although not exhaustive, are representative of the coverage in this Journal. • International financial markets • International securities markets • Foreign exchange markets • Eurocurrency markets • International syndications • Term structures of Eurocurrency rates • Determination of exchange rates • Information, speculation and parity • Forward rates and swaps • International payment mechanisms • International commercial banking; • International investment banking • Central bank intervention • International monetary systems • Balance of payments.