Guan, Yamei; Sun, Na; Wu, Sa ah Jinhui; Sun, Yuxi
A icle
Supply chain inance, in ech de elopmen , and inancing
e iciency o SMEs in China
Adminis a i e Sciences
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Sugges ed Ci a ion: Guan, Yamei; Sun, Na; Wu, Sa ah Jinhui; Sun, Yuxi (2025) : Supply chain inance,
in ech de elopmen , and inancing e iciency o SMEs in China, Adminis a i e Sciences, ISSN
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Ci a ion: Guan, Y., Sun, N., Wu, S. J.,
& Sun, Y. (2025). Supply Chain
Finance, Fin ech De elopmen , and
Financing E iciency o SMEs in China.
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A icle
Supply Chain Finance, Fin ech De elopmen , and Financing
E iciency o SMEs in China
Yamei Guan 1, Na Sun 1,* , Sa ah Jinhui Wu 2and Yuxi Sun 3
1
School o Accoun ing, Nanjing Uni e si y o Finance and Economics, 3 Wenyuan Road, Xianlin College Town,
Nanjing 210023, China; [email p o ec ed]
2Gabelli School o Business, Fo dham Uni e si y, 113 Wes 60 h S ee , New Yo k, NY 10023, USA;
[email p o ec ed]
3G adua e School o A s and Sciences, Columbia Uni e si y, 109 Low Memo ial Lib a y, MC 4306, 535 Wes
116 h S ee , New Yo k, NY 10027, USA; [email p o ec ed]
*Co espondence: [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac : A long- e m s a egy o China’s na ional de elopmen is o os e he g ow h o
“Specialized, Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e (SRNI)” small and medium-sized en e p ises
(SMEs). Howe e , hese en e p ises o en ace signi ican inancing cons ain s due o hei
high echnological inpu , high human capi al inpu , ligh asse cha ac e is ics, and lack
o e ec i e colla e al. Supply chain inance, as an impo an way o combine p oduc ion
and inancing, could p o ide inancial se ices in he eal economy by alle ia ing hese
cons ain s o SMEs and imp o ing he quali y o c edi so as o e i alize supply chain
unds. This pape empi ically examines he ela ionship be ween supply chain inance,
in ech de elopmen , and inancing e iciency using a sample o 757 “SRNI” SMEs in
Shanghai and Shenzhen A-sha es om 2013 o 2023. The indings e eal ha supply
chain inance signi ican ly enhances he inancing e iciency o “SRNI” SMEs. Mo eo e ,
he de elopmen o inancial echnology u he ampli ies such posi i e e ec s. This
esea ch con ibu es o he heo e ical unde s anding o how supply chain inance and
in ech impac s he inancing e iciency o SRNI SMEs and p o ides aluable insigh s o
e alua ing SME inancing e iciency.
Keywo ds: supply chain inance; inancing e iciency; inancial echnology ( in ech); small
and medium-sized en e p ises (SMEs); da a en elope analysis (DEA)
1. In oduc ion
China’s Small and Medium-sized En e p ises (SMEs) ha e con ibu ed signi ican ly
o he na ional economy and social de elopmen . Despi e hei signi ican con ibu ions
and conside able size, SMEs ha e aced nume ous challenges, such as luc ua ions in he
mac oeconomic en i onmen , inc easing supply chain unce ain y, and he p essu e o
educe excess capaci y. These obs acles hinde hei ansi ion o a “small bu migh y”
de elopmen model. In ligh o his de elopmen al con ex , he Chinese go e nmen has
ins i u ed a se ies o policies. One aims o cul i a e a g oup o “Specialized, Re ined,
Niche, and Inno a i e (SRNI)” SMEs ha ha e niche ma ke s, possess obus inno a ion
capabili ies, and a e adep in key co e echnologies. These en i ies se e as pi o al condui s,
enhancing supply chain esilience and compe i i eness.
“Specialized, Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” (SRNI) small and medium-sized en-
e p ises (SMEs) embody ou key cha ac e is ics: specializa ion, e inemen , uniqueness,
and inno a ion. “Specialized” e e s o a ocus on specialized de elopmen and niche ma -
ke s, dedica ing e o s o speci ic p oduc applica ions. “Re ined” emphasizes p ecision
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/admsci15030086
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 2 o 16
and excellence in en e p ise managemen , p o iding high-quali y p oduc s and se ices.
“Niche” highligh s he dis inc ad an ages o echnology, p ocesses, and p oduc s, show-
casing egional cha ac e is ics and unc ional uniqueness. “Inno a i e” unde sco es s ong
inno a ion capabili ies, adop ing di e se and c ea i e p oduc ion me hods, inc easing
in es men in inno a ion, and enhancing o e all inno a ion capaci y.
Howe e , he “SRNI” SMEs, cha ac e ized by hei high echnological and human
capi al inpu s and asse -ligh a ibu es, ace challenges in a numbe o ways. In e ms o
inancing channels, SMEs p ima ily ely on c edi loans and in e nal inancing o add ess
hei unding sho ages. Howe e , hese inancing channels a e ela i ely na ow and
canno ully mee he inancing needs o SMEs. To mi iga e he isks associa ed wi h
und delega ion, und p o ide s mus in es signi ican human, inancial, and ma e ial
esou ces o assess he inancial s a us, c edi wo hiness, and ma ke p ospec s be o e
ex ending unds. E en a e p o iding he unds, addi ional esou ces a e equi ed o
moni o how he unds a e u ilized. This p ocess leads o inc eased ansac ion cos s,
esul ing in highe inancing cos s o SMEs. As o c edi scale disc imina ion, la ge
inancial ins i u ions ha e a endency o p io i ize inancing se ices o la ge en e p ises,
while SMEs o en encoun e limi ed access o inance om comme cial banking ins i u ions.
Simila ly o c edi scale disc imina ion, he dis inc i e cha ac e is ics o China’s socialis
ma ke economy leads o inancing biases due o di e ences in p ope y igh s be ween
bo owe s and lende s. I is easie o s a e-owned en e p ises o ob ain c edi om inancial
ins i u ions han p i a e en e p ises (such as SMEs).
Consequen ly, in o de o achie e he sus ainable de elopmen o “SRNI” SMEs, i
is impe a i e o iden i y a sui able “engine”, le e aging inancial suppo o alle ia e he
echnological inno a ion bo leneck and echnological inno a ion o add ess he inancing.
Supply chain inance, a means o in eg a ing p oduc ion and inancing, o e s a po en ial
solu ion. I is a inancing model in which inancial ins i u ions, based on supply chain
pa ne ships, p o ide inancing, se lemen , and o he comp ehensi e inancial se ices
o hei ups eam and downs eam en e p ises a ound he co e en e p ises. The model
aims o mee he capi al demand and isk managemen needs o all pa ies in he supply
chain. I has he po en ial o assis companies in enhancing hei cash low e iciency and
add essing issues ela ed o paymen , inancing, and c edi isk ac oss all segmen s o he
supply chain. In academia, supply chain inance has ga ne ed signi ican a en ion due o
i s capaci y o alle ia e he inancing cons ain s expe ienced by SMEs. I has been shown
o enhance he quali y o c edi , he eby e i alizing supply chain unds and acili a ing he
deli e y o inancial se ices o he eal economy (Song e al.,2016).
The e a e many examples o using supply chain inance o add ess he inancing
challenges o SMEs. Fo example, a supply chain inance model led by An G oup, in
collabo a ion wi h MYbank and China Con inen P ope y and Casual y Insu ance, in ol es
leading supply chain companies such as Mengyang G oup, Ke chin Ca le Indus y, and
Yiguo F esh. I p o ides supply chain inancial se ices anging om loans o sales o
ups eam la ge-scale b eeding en e p ises and downs eam ag icul u al ma e ial sales
en e p ises, signi ican ly imp o ing he inancing e iciency o he en i e supply chain
pa ne s (Y. Wang & Mao,2019).
While he p e ious case shows he p omising ole o supply chain inance, he pu pose
o his s udy is o empi ically in es iga e he ela ionship be ween supply chain inance
and inancing e iciency using a la ge da ase , pa icula ly in a sample o “SRNI” SMEs. In
addi ion, his s udy explo es he ole o inancial echnology in such a ela ionship.
Da a om 757 lis ed “SRNI” SMEs in Shanghai and Shenzhen A-sha es om 2013 o
2023 a e used in a panel da a analysis o es he co esponding hypo heses. The indings
indica e ha implemen ing supply chain inance can subs an ially enhance he inancing
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 3 o 16
e iciency o “SRNI” SMEs. Fu he mo e, his s udy sugges s ha ad anced egional
in ech posi i ely mode a es he e ec o supply chain inance and inancing e iciency.
This conclusion emains consis en a e conduc ing an endogenei y es , ensu ing he
obus ness o he indings.
The esul s o e a p omising solu ion o he su i al and success o SMEs. I no only
en iches he heo e ical esea ch on he impac o supply chain inance on he inancing
e iciency o SMEs bu also gene a es c ucial policy implica ions and guidance on he
sus ainable de elopmen o “Specialized, Re- ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” SMEs.
The emainde o his pape is o ganized as ollows. Sec ion 2p o ides a ele an
li e a u e e iew on his opic. Sec ion 3con ains he heo e ical de elopmen o he
hypo heses. Sec ion 4desc ibes he me hodology, while Sec ion 5p esen s he analysis and
esul s. Sec ion 6concludes his s udy wi h con ibu ions, implica ions, and limi a ions.
2. Li e a u e Re iew
2.1. Supply Chain Finance
The co e objec i e o supply chain inance is o op imize he capi al low mechanism
among en e p ises by le e aging solu ions o e ed by inancial ins i u ions and echnical
se ice p o ide s. F om he pe spec i e o he en i e supply chain, i enhances he man-
agemen o capi al low and d i es he apid de elopmen o indus ial supply chains
h ough inancial business inno a ion and ad anced managemen ools. The esea ch ocus
o supply chain inance li e a u e p ima ily concen a ed on he mic o le el o en e p ises,
encompassing he ollowing h ee dimensions.
Fi s , exis ing s udies p ima ily ocus on analyzing he economic e ec s o supply
chain inance o e alua e i s e ec i eness in alle ia ing inancing cons ain s. Fo ins ance,
L. Wang and Hu (2018) inco po a ed elemen s such as indus y– inance in eg a ion and
s a egic commi men in o he comp ehensi e analysis sys em o supply chain inance
and co po a e inancing cons ain s. Thei esul s e eal ha supply chain inance has a
signi ican nega i e e ec on inancing cons ain s o en e p ises, meaning i e ec i ely al-
le ia es inancing cons ain s. Addi ionally, bo h indus y– inance in eg a ion and s a egic
commi men play a signi ican posi i e mode a ing ole in he ela ionship be ween supply
chain inance and he inancing cons ain s o en e p ises.
In s udying how supply chain inance enhances inancing e ec i eness, schola s ha e
conduc ed in-dep h analyses o i s speci ic impac on inancing cos and inancing e iciency
o SMEs om bo h quali a i e and quan i a i e dimensions. Based on social ne wo k heo y,
X. Li e al. (2020) cons uc ed a heo e ical model examining he ela ionship be ween sus-
ainable supply chain inance, en i onmen al egula ion, and inancing e ec i eness. They
empi ically alida ed his model using su ey da a om 386 SME execu i es. The esul s
indica e ha sus ainable supply chain inance signi ican ly con ibu es o he inancing
e ec i eness o SMEs ac oss all h ee dimensions: economic, social, and en i onmen al.
Second, some s udies ha e explo ed he isk con ol mechanism o supply chain i-
nance. The execu ion o inancial c edi business is o en accompanied by isks, and i s
ans e able, dynamic, and complex na u e may expose he inancing sys em o supply
chains o unce ain y. Su and Lu (2015) employed clus e analysis o classi y companies
in o di e en le els and in oduced an adap i e weigh o mula o each le el based on he
numbe and deg ee o a en ion o ha le el while conside ing he cha ac e is ics o co po-
a e supply chain ne wo ks. They ound ha he en e p ise-le el c edi isk assessmen
wi h highe a en ion ca ies a g ea e weigh in he o e all c edi isk assessmen o he
supply chain sys em, he eby exe ing a mo e signi ican impac on he supply chain.
Building on he gene al amewo k o supply chain isk managemen , Song and
Yang (2018) app oached he isk managemen p oblem o supply chain inance om h ee
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 4 o 16
dimensions—s uc u e, p ocess, and elemen s— o e ec i ely add ess a ious sou ces o
isks and achie e desi ed inancing pe o mance. Wan (2008) ound ha he isk mi iga ion
mechanisms in eg al o supply chain inance a e suscep ible o ailu e h ough an examina-
ion o he isk model associa ed wi h accoun s ecei able inancing. They emphasized he
need o banks o es ablish a new ype o coope a i e ela ionship wi h he co e en e p ises
and le e age hei espec i e s eng hs o ul ill he ole o supply chain inance.
Thi d, some o he li e a u e explo es he ope a ional s a egies o supply chain inance,
including inancing s a egies, ansac ion s a egies, in en o y managemen s a egies,
and p oduc ion s a egies. Among hem, nume ous s udies conside he in e play o
p oduc ion decisions, in en o y decisions, ansac ion decisions, and inancing decisions
wi hin he con ex o dual supply chain inance cons ain s. F om he pe spec i e o
ex e nal inancing, Buzaco and Zhang (2004) highligh ed he impo ance o p oduc ion
and ex e nal inancing decisions o he business en i onmen by inco po a ing a inancing
elemen in o he p oduc ion decision and modeling he a ailable cash in each pe iod as a
unc ion o asse s and liabili ies.
Yan and Sun (2011) in es iga ed he op imal wa ehouse eceip pledge inancing
s a egy o capi al-cons ained e aile s wi hin supply chain inance sys ems unde demand
unce ain y. Th ough nume ical examples, hey analyzed he e ec s o a ying c edi limi s
o e aile s on he op imal s a egy o he supply chain inance sys em and concluded ha
he limi ed c edi limi inancing scheme can mo i a e he supply chain inance sys em o
inc ease o de quan i ies and p o ide e ec i e inancing incen i es o isk- aking e aile s.
2.2. E iciency o Co po a e Finance
In he con ex o en e p ise inancing e iciency, schola s ha e no ye p o ided a clea
and uni ied de ini ion o he e iciency o co po a e inance. Resea ch has mainly ocused
on he ela ionship be ween inancing me hods and en e p ise pe o mance. Klappe e al.
(2002) a gued ha he choice o inancing me hods—equi y, bonds, o
endogenous— esul s
in di e en inancing cos s, which, in he long un, will a ec he en e p ise’s u u e
inancing e iciency. Jain and Kini (1994) ound ha he e is a signi ican decline in he
ope a ing pe o mance o en e p ises ollowing ini ial public o e ing, indica ing a gene al
ine iciency in equi y inancing. B ad o d and Chen (2004) s udied he inancing e iciency
o science and echnology SMEs, concluding ha inancing h ough loan gua an ees is
mo e e icien han di ec loans p o ided by he Chinese go e nmen .
Xiao and Ma (2004) belie ed ha inancing e iciency includes ansac ion e iciency
and alloca ion e iciency. They emphasized ha in es o s should be able o ob ain inancial
esou ces a he lowes cos while u ilizing limi ed esou ces o op imal p oduc ion. Zhang
and Zhao (2015) u he e ined he concep o inancing e iciency, de ining i as he abili y
o an en e p ise o secu e inancial capi al wi h he op imal bene i –cos a io and he lowes
isk du ing inancing ac i i ies.
Fac o s a ec ing co po a e inancing e iciency can be ca ego ized in o mac o and
mic o ac o s. Mac o-le el ac o s include he economic en i onmen , poli ical en i onmen ,
in o ma ion en i onmen , inancial en i onmen , and so on. Xiong e al. (2011) concluded
ha he de elopmen o s a egic eme ging indus ies is signi ican ly in luenced by he
mac oeconomic en i onmen , and he ac o s a ec ing inancial suppo e iciency ex-
hibi s age-speci ic cha ac e is ics: eme ging indus ies ela ed o low-ca bon echnologies
achie ed be e inancial suppo e iciency, while he high-end equipmen manu ac u ing
sec o aced challenges in his ega d. They concluded ha he be e he mac oeconomic
si ua ion is, he highe he e iciency o inancial suppo he indus y ecei es om he
inancial ma ke . On he mic o-le el, i m-speci ic ac o s such as inancing s uc u e,
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 5 o 16
i m size, go e nance s uc u e, p o i abili y, and sol ency also play signi ican oles in
de e mining inancing e iciency.
S. Wang (2014) a gued ha s a e-owned en e p ises (SOEs) a e compa a i ely less
e icien in inancing han p i a ely owned and o eign-in es ed i ms. Cui e al. (2014),
based on he cons uc ion o he inancing e iciency calcula ion model, u ilized inancial
da a om non-lis ed SMEs o conduc a dynamic ac o panel da a model analysis, com-
p ehensi ely examining he ac o s in luencing he inancing e iciency o non-lis ed SMEs.
Thei indings e ealed ha he company’s in insic quali y and co e business condi ions
ha e a signi ican impac on i s p o i abili y, he sho - e m exogenous deb unding sou ces,
hei size and liquidi y, and he company’s sol ency capaci y gene ally play c ucial oles.
Howe e , he e ec o comme cial c edi inancing cos s was ound o be insigni ican .
2.3. Financial Technology
In he 1990s, he e m “ inancial echnology” was i s men ioned by he Chai man o
Ci ig oup (X. Li e al.,2020). Th ough con inuous en ichmen and expansion by academia
and indus y, inancial echnology ( in ech) has been de ined as echnology-d i en inancial
inno a ion. Speci ically, i e e s o inancial inno a ion ha le e ages cu ing-edge ech-
nologies o acili a e in o ma ion exchange be ween banks and en e p ises, ans o m he de-
li e y o inancial p oduc s and se ices, and os e new business models
(X. Li e al.,2020)
.
The applica ion o eme ging echnologies in he inancial sec o has e ec i ely educed
in o ma ion asymme y in inancial ma ke s, s eamlined adi ional inancial se ice p o-
cesses, and lowe ed inancing isks and ansac ion cos s (Golds ein e al.,2019).
The impac o in ech on supply chain inance and inancing e iciency can be a gued in
a numbe o ways. Fi s , in ech a ec s he e iciency o indus y– inance in eg a ion. F om
he indus y side, Chod e al. (2020) p oposed ha in ech can enhance he au hen ici y and
anspa ency o in o ma ion ela ed o he business low, logis ics, and capi al low o small
and medium-sized en e p ises in he supply chain. This helps inancial ins i u ions, such
as comme cial banks, ecognize hei de elopmen po en ial, he eby inc easing inancing
accessibili y and enhancing inancing e iciency. F om he capi al side, Be ge and Udell
(2006) a gued ha in ech enables banks o ga he mo e comp ehensi e “so ” in o ma ion,
imp o e he e iciency o c edi assessmen , and boos inancing e iciency.
Second, in ech in luences he way inancial se ices a e deli e ed. X. Wang (2015)
belie ed ha in ech has d i en he de elopmen o c edi business owa ds ba ch p o-
cessing, in elligence, and in ensi ica ion, signi ican ly educing he applica ion and ap-
p o al p ocesses, he eby imp o ing he e iciency o bank-en e p ise c edi handling.
Huang e al. (2020)
p oposed ha in ech signi ican ly educes he ansac ion and p ocess-
ing cos s o banks o p o ide inancial se ices o SMEs; his helps SMEs educe inancing
cos s, he eby enhancing he le el o supply chain inancing.
Finally, in ech in luences isk p e en ion and con ol capabili ies. Eme ging ech-
nologies such as big da a, cloud compu ing, and blockchain acili a e in o ma ion sha ing
and collabo a i e de elopmen among mul iple en i ies in supply chains. This e ec i ely
educes in o ma ion asymme y, lowe s c edi isks o banks, and imp o es he accessibil-
i y o supply chain inancing. Su he land (2018) in es iga ed how c edi epo ing a ec s
i ms’ access o c edi and how lende s engage wi h hem. The indings highligh he mixed
e ec s o in ech-d i en anspa ency enhancemen s on c edi a ailabili y.
2.4. Resea ch Gaps
The e iew o he li e a u e shows a leas a ew gaps. Fi s , con en -wise, exis ing
s udies p edominan ly concen a e on supply chain inance models, hei in luence on
ope a ional e iciency, and hei ole in mi iga ing inancing cons ain s. Howe e , he e
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 6 o 16
is a no able gap in he quan i a i e analysis o how supply chain inance a ec s inancing
e iciency. This s udy add esses his gap by u ilizing he Da a En elopmen Analysis (DEA)
model o quan i y inancing e iciency and employing linea eg ession o di ec ly measu e
he ex en o his impac . Second, in e ms o he esea ch subjec , exis ing esea ch o en
in ol es a wide ange o complex subjec s, which una oidably b ings in company-speci ic
noises and may con amina e he esul s. This s udy na ows i s ocus o a speci ic ype o
en e p ises—“Specialized, Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” (SRNI) SMEs. Such en e p ises
a e cha ac e ized by hei high echnological con en , signi ican human capi al in es men ,
and ligh asse s uc u e, making hei inancing challenges mo e p ominen and pe inen
o con empo a y issues. Thi d, exis ing s udies ha e shown ha in ech can enhance supply
chain inance’s anspa ency, e iciency, and secu i y, he eby be e -se ing SMEs. This
pape u he explo es he “ca aly ic ole” o in ech in supply chain inance, op imizing
a ious aspec s o supply chain inance h ough echnological inno a ion, he eby mo e
e ec i ely add essing he inancing challenges aced by SMEs.
3. Theo e ical De elopmen o Hypo heses
3.1. Supply Chain Finance and Financing E iciency
Financing e iciency is he esul o he combined impac o capi al inpu and ou pu ,
which is speci ically a ec ed by he cos o capi al acquisi ion and he e iciency o capi al
u iliza ion. “Specialized, Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” SMEs ha e o bea highe
inancing cos s due o hei inhe en weakness, small scale, in o ma ion asymme y, and
o he ulne abili ies. The e o e, hey o en s uggle o secu e he necessa y unds, leading
o low inancing e iciency. This, in u n, impedes hei esea ch and de elopmen (R&D)
e o s and nega i ely a ec s hei long- e m sus ainable de elopmen .
In e ms o capi al in es men , supply chain inance add esses he issue o high inanc-
ing cos s o “SRNI” SMEs in he ollowing h ee aspec s. Fi s , supply chain inance uses
he co e en e p ise as a gua an o o SMEs, enabling hem o secu e inancing. This ap-
p oach e ec i ely mi iga es he inancing di icul ies o SMEs due o poo c edi condi ions
while main aining much lexibili y. Second, supply chain inance ex ends i s se ices o
mul iple en e p ises wi hin he supply chain. Such sys em in eg a ion inc eases in o ma ion
anspa ency, os e s g ea e coope a ion among en e p ises, and educes isks h oughou
he inancing p ocess. Thi d, supply chain inance is an e ec i e inancing mechanism ha
can signi ican ly educe he high isk o de aul due o in o ma ion asymme y. Roo ed
in ac ual ade ac i i ies, i ex ends c edi e alua ion o he whole supply chain p ocess,
akes in o accoun he ac ual needs o en e p ises, moni o s he ci cula ion o goods, and
allows inancial ins i u ions o pa icipa e in he u iliza ion o unds di ec ly. The e o e, he
in oduc ion o supply chain inance in o he en i e supply chain can educe he cos o
ob aining unds and alle ia e he inancing di icul ies o “SRNI” SMEs.
F om he ou pu pe spec i e, supply chain inance, g ounded in sel -paying and
closed-loop capi al ope a ions, can e ec i ely con ol isks and imp o e he e iciency o
capi al u iliza ion by coo dina ing inancial and indus ial esou ces. In addi ion, supply
chain inance o ms an open in o ma ion-sha ing model h ough a long- e m pa ne
coope a ion ne wo k. I p o ides dynamic da a change p edic ion and accele a es he low
o in o ma ion, capi al, and o he elemen s be ween ups eam and downs eam en e p ises.
No only does he model op imize supply chain ope a ions, bu i also boos s he inno a ion
pe o mance and p oduc ma ke compe i i eness o “SRNI” SMEs, he eby c ea ing a
mul iplie e ec be ween indus ial and inancial bene i s. Acco ding o hese a gumen s,
supply chain inance enables “SRNI” SMEs o imp o e he e iciency o capi al mobiliza ion
by educing he ma ginal cos o inancing while p omo ing he e icien u iliza ion o
in eg a ed capi al. Acco dingly, we p opose he ollowing hypo hesis.
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 7 o 16
H1. The de elopmen o supply chain inance can p omo e he inancing e iciency o “Specialized,
Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” SMEs.
3.2. The Role o Fin ech
Agains he backd op o he apid de elopmen o digi al echnology, in ech is ans-
o ming he managemen and ope a ion mode o he inancial indus y. Empowe ed by
cu ing-edge echnologies such as cloud compu ing, big da a, and mobile in o ma ion
echnology, in ech has o e hauled he adi ional inancial se ices indus y all a ound,
es uc u ing and op imizing he adi ional inancial business, and p o iding mo e con e-
nien , e icien , and secu e inancial se ices (Buchak e al.,2018).
Fi s o all, by le e aging eme ging echnologies, in ech can help inancial ins i u ions
gain a mo e comp ehensi e unde s anding o he business si ua ion and c edi wo hiness
o en e p ises, which is mo e conduci e o in eg a ing he si ua ion o ups eam and
downs eam en e p ises in he supply chain and p omo ing he de elopmen o supply
chain inance.
Second, wi h he help o eme ging echnologies, in ech can b eak h ough he spa ial
limi a ions o he adi ional inancial sec o and inc ease he supply o unds in he c edi
ma ke . Fin ech p o ides a wide ange o inancial p oduc s and se ices o en e p ises in
di e en egions h ough c oss- egional inancing pla o ms, hus expanding en e p ises’
inancing channels. Easing he cons ain s o en e p ises in he inancing p ocess c ea es
be e condi ions o he de elopmen o supply chain inance and u he p omo es he
de elopmen o inancing e iciency o “SRNI” SMEs.
Finally, inancial echnology’s in elligen and in o ma i e unc ions can also help i-
nancial ins i u ions supe ise he use o en e p ises’ pos -loan unds, imp o e he e iciency
o pos -loan supe ision, and educe mo al isks. In conclusion, de eloping inancial
echnology can educe he inancing cos o “SRNI” SMEs and imp o e hei inancing
e iciency. Based on his, we pu o wa d he ollowing hypo hesis:
H2. Fin ech de elopmen posi i ely mode a es supply chain inance and he inancing e iciency o
“Specialized, Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” SMEs.
4. Me hodology
4.1. Sample Selec ion and Da a Sou ces
Since he Minis y o Indus y and In o ma ion Technology (MIIT) i s issued he
“Guiding Opinions on P omo ing he De elopmen o ‘SRNI’ SMEs” in June 2013, we se
2013 as he s a ing yea o he de elopmen o “SRNI” SMEs. Using he lis o “Specialized,
Re ined, Niche, and Inno a i e” en e p ises published by he MIIT om 2014 o 2024, we
il e ed ou he lis ed companies and gene a ed a sample o 1193 SRNI small and medium-
sized en e p ises lis ed on he Shanghai and Shenzhen A-sha es om 2013 o 2023. To
ensu e he sample was ele an and meaning ul o ou esea ch ques ions, we u he
excluded companies in he inancial indus y, hose wi h an ST ading s a us in he cu en
yea , hose lis ed o less han one yea , and hose wi h missing inancial da a. This le us
wi h a inal sample o 757 lis ed companies, comp ising 4717 obse a ions o e 10 yea s.
The da a in his pape p ima ily comes om he China S ock Ma ke and Accoun -
ing Resea ch Da abase (CSMAR) da abase. The CSMAR Da abase is a comp ehensi e
and au ho i a i e inancial da abase designed o suppo academic esea ch and p ac ical
analysis in he ields o economics, inance, and accoun ing. CSMAR is widely used by
esea che s, analys s, and ins i u ions globally due o i s ex ensi e da a co e age, accu acy,
and eliabili y (He e al.,2022). The da abase includes de ailed inancial s a emen s, s ock
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 8 o 16
ma ke ading da a, co po a e go e nance in o ma ion, and specialized da ase s such as
supply chain inance, ESG me ics, and mo e.
The in ech da a in his pape is sou ced om he Peking Uni e si y Digi al Inclusi e
Finance Index (PKU-DFI). The PKU-DFI is a comp ehensi e and in luen ial index de el-
oped by he Ins i u e o Digi al Finance a Peking Uni e si y in collabo a ion wi h An
G oup. I measu es he de elopmen and accessibili y o digi al inancial se ices ac oss
China, ocusing on p omo ing inancial inclusion h ough echnology. This pape uses he
p o incial le el in ech index.
4.2. Resea ch Model and Va iable Measu emen s
Panel da a analysis is conduc ed using he ixed e ec es ima ion me hod (analyzed
wi h STATA). The ixed e ec model can con ol o ime-in a ian indi idual-speci ic
cha ac e is ics (such as co po a e cul u e, geog aphic loca ion, e c.), he eby educing
omi ed a iable bias and imp o ing he accu acy o es ima ion esul s. Addi ionally,
STATA p o ides obus s anda d e o s o e ec i ely add ess issues o he e oskedas ici y
and au oco ela ion.
Model 1 is used o es esea ch H1: he ela ionship be ween supply chain inance
(SCF) and inancing e iciency (Fine ) o “SRNI” SMEs.
Fine i, =β0+β1SCFi, +ΣβjCon oli, +γi, +ηi, +εi, (1)
Model (2) in oduces mode a ing a iables o es H2: he mode a ing e ec o in ech
(FinTech) de elopmen on he ela ionship be ween supply chain inance and he inancing
e iciency o “SRNI” SMEs:
Fine i, =β0+β1SCFi, +β2FinTechp, +β3SCFi, ×FinTechp, +ΣβjCon oli, +γi, +ηi, +εi, (2)
in which i o SME, o yea , p o p o ince,
γi,
indus y ixed e ec s,
ηi,
yea ixed e ec s,
and εi, andom e o e ms.
The e a e h ee common measu emen me hods o he dependen a iable— inancing
e iciency (Fine ): (1) uzzy e alua ion me hod and en opy alue me hod; (2) single a io
me hod; and (3) da a en elopmen analysis (DEA) me hod. We chose o use DEA me hod
o wo easons. DEA is a non-pa ame ic me hod o e alua ing he ela i e e iciency
o decision-making uni s (DMUs) wi h mul iple inpu s and ou pu s. By employing lin-
ea p og amming, DEA cons uc s an e icien on ie , which se es as a benchma k o
compa ing he pe o mance o each DMU. The DEA model a oids e o s caused by inapp o-
p ia e unc ional o m assump ions and allows o c oss-sec ional compa isons o inancing
e iciency ac oss i ms wi h di e en scales and uni s (Zhang e al.,2020). In addi ion,
he DEA app oach has been widely used o measu e inancing e iciency
(Sun e al.,2023;
Yang e al.,2023).
D awing on he esea ch o F. Li and Wang (2014), we used DEAP 2.1 (a DEA APP)
o calcula e he annual inancing e iciency o en e p ises, wi h e iciency sco es anging
be ween 0 and 1. The inpu indica o s include o al asse s, asse –liabili y a io, and main
business cos s, while he ou pu indica o s include e u n on ne asse s, o al asse u no e ,
and ope a ing income g ow h a e.
The independen a iable in his pape is supply chain inance (SCF). The measu emen
o supply chain inance ollows he s udy o Liu e al. (2024). We adop mic o-le el
con inuous p oxy a iables a he en e p ise le el and use he sum o sho - e m bo owings,
no es payable, and accoun s payable as a p opo ion o o al asse s as a p oxy o supply
chain inance. This measu emen is chosen because he “ inancial a ibu es” o supply chain
inance a e p ima ily e lec ed in sho - e m inancing ools o supply chain ansac ions,
which alle ia e inancing cons ain s o SMEs h ough sho - e m bo owings. Meanwhile,
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 86 15 o 16
Ins i u ional Re iew Boa d S a emen : No applicable.
In o med Consen S a emen : No applicable.
Da a A ailabili y S a emen : The o iginal da a p esen ed in he s udy a e openly a ailable in China
S ock Ma ke & Accoun ing Resea ch Da abase (h ps://da a.csma .com/) and Peking Uni e si y
Inclusi e Finance Index (h ps://id .pku.edu.cn/index.h m).
Con lic s o In e es : The au ho s decla e no con lic s o in e es .
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