数字普惠金融改善城市技术创新“低端锁定”困境了吗?

Does Digital Inclusive Finance Improve the “Low-end Lock-in” Dilemma of Urban Technological Innovation?

数字普惠金融促进经济社会包容性发展已备受关注,其技术创新效应如何亦成为数字经济时代城市创新发展不可忽视的重要议题。文章利用2011—2018年中国270个地级及以上城市的面板数据,实证考察了数字普惠金融对城市技术创新的影响及其作用机制。结论表明:首先,数字普惠金融能够改善我国城市技术创新及其“低端锁定”困境,使得城市更倾向于进行含有高端技术的实质性创新。其次,机制方面,在供给侧,数字普惠金融能够缓解区域融资信贷约束(提高银行业竞争力、促进传统金融供给),从而促进城市总体技术创新、高端技术创新和低端技术创新;在需求侧,提升市场消费需求(促进消费结构升级和消费规模扩张)是数字普惠金融促进城市高端技术创新的重要渠道,但对城市总体技术创新和低端技术创新的渠道效应不显著。最后,数字普惠金融改善城市技术创新“低端锁定”困境的正外部效应在高市场化与高互联网水平城市中更为明显,同时对低市场化水平、低互联网水平城市的总体技术创新存在“雪中送炭”效应。研究结论为有效发挥数字普惠金融服务城市创新和协调发展提供了稳健的经验证据。

Much attention has been paid to the promotion of inclusive economic and social development by digital inclusive finance.What is the effect of technological innovation?It is an issue that cannot be ignored in urban innovation and development in the era of digital economy.Based on the panel data of 270 prefecture-level and above cities in China from 2011 to 2018,this paper empirically examines the impact and mechanism of digital inclusive financial development on urban technological innovation.The conclusion shows that:First,digital inclusive finance can promote China’s urban technological innovation and improve its“low-end lock-in”dilemma.With digital inclusive finance incentives,cities are more inclined to choose to engage in substantial innovation in highend technologies,and the finding holds after a series of robustness tests including instrumental variables.Second,alleviating financing and credit constraints and promoting market consumer demand constitute an effective mechanism for digital inclusive finance to improve the“low-end lock-in”dilemma of urban technological innovation at both ends of“supply-demand”.Moreover,the“supply-demand”mechanism shows a biased channel effect on urban high-end technological innovation.Specifically,on the supply side,digital inclusive finance can improve the competitiveness of the urban banking industry and promote the supply of traditional finance,thus promoting overall urban technological innovation,high-end technological innovation and lowend technological innovation.On the demand side,digital inclusive finance can promote the upgrading of consumption structure and the expansion of consumption scale,thus promoting urban high-end technological innovation,but the impact on urban overall technological innovation and low-end technological innovation is not significant.Third,the positive external effect of digital inclusive finance on improving the“low-end lock-in”dilemma of urban technological innovation is more obvious in cities with a high market level and a high Internet level.At the same time,there is a“timely help”effect on the overall technological innovation of cities with a low market level and a low Internet level.The findings provide robust empirical evidence for the effective use of digital inclusive finance serving urban innovation and coordinated development,and also have implications for accelerating the digital transformation of cities and financial industries.