Impacts of digital inclusive finance on CO2 emissions from a spatial perspective: Evidence from 272 cities in China

As a new proposition under the strategic goal of sustainable development, financial inclusiveness has become an effective way to overcome environmental constraints. Therefore, considering the impact of the development of digital inclusive finance on carbon emissions is the key to promoting China's high-quality economic growth. From a spatial perspective, using China's city-level panel data of 272 Chinese cities from 2011 to 2017, empirically studies the impact of digital inclusive finance on CO2 emissions by using spatial econometric model, and analyzes its direct effect, indirect effect and total effect. At the same time, the instrumental variable method is used to deal with the possible endogenous problems in the model. The results show that from a spatial perspective, the promotion of digital inclusive finance is conducive to reducing urban CO2 emissions. Moreover, there is a significant positive spatial spillover effect on China's urban CO2 emissions. In addition, in cities with developed traditional finance and high degree of industrialization, digital inclusive finance has a stronger effect on CO2 emission reduction. The impact of the development of digital inclusive finance on CO2 emissions in the eastern and western China is negative, but the central is the opposite. Therefore, in order to achieve sustainable development goals, the government should formulate environmental policies with financial inclusion goals consistent with energy consumption behavior.