Data element marketization and financing constraints in new energy firms: Evidence from the staggered establishment of big data trading platforms in China

Data elements marketization (DEM) has evolved into a pivotal pathway that alleviates financing frictions in new energy firms while facilitating the convergence of digital economy and green development initiatives. Using micro-level data of listed new energy firms in China covering the years 2006 to 2023, the present study harnesses a quasi-natural experimental setting derived from the geographically and temporally staggered establishment of data element trading platforms (DETPs). A multi-period difference-in-differences model is constructed to examine how the DEM affects the financing constraints of new energy firms and to uncover the mechanisms through which this effect operates. Evidence shows that the establishment of data trading platforms exerts a significant mitigating effect on the financing constraints faced by firms. This effect operates primarily through reducing information monopolies, expanding collateralizable asset bases, and enhancing the level of digital innovation. Further heterogeneity analyses show that the alleviating effect is stronger among firms with richer digital footprints, weaker supply chain efficiency, cleaner government–business relations, and lower levels of banking competition. The findings yield actionable implications for new energy enterprises grappling with financing bottlenecks in their participation in data element markets, and further furnish evidence-based guidance for policymakers aiming to advance data element marketization reforms and expedite the achievement of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals.