Synergistic empowerment of digital finance and green finance in the development of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises: Theoretical analysis and empirical evidence

Enhancing the level of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises is a crucial approach to achieving high-quality agricultural development. Currently, agriculture-related enterprises generally face the realistic dilemma of difficult and expensive financing, and there is an urgent need for innovation in financial business forms to provide effective support. As emerging forms within the financial sector, digital finance and green finance play a pivotal role in driving the formation of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises through their synergistic development. Based on the panel data of China’s A-share agriculture-related listed enterprises from 2011 to 2022, this paper constructs an evaluation index system for new quality productive forces from four dimensions: new quality labor force, new quality means of labor, new quality labor objects, and optimized combination. It explores the impact effect and underlying mechanism of the synergy between digital finance and green finance on the development of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises, and further examines the moderating effects of financial supervision and intellectual property protection. The findings are as follows. 1) Both digital finance and green finance individually can significantly enhance the level of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises, but the promotion effect of the synergy between the two is stronger. This conclusion remains valid after a series of endogeneity and robustness tests. 2) The synergy between digital finance and green finance promotes the development of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises through three channels: alleviating financing constraints, promoting digital transformation, and reducing information asymmetry. 3) Strong financial supervision and intellectual property protection amplify the enhancing effect of the synergistic development of digital finance and green finance on the level of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises. 4) For agriculture-related enterprises that are state-owned, small, maturity period, located in eastern regions and major grain-consuming areas, as well as those belonging to heavy polluting industries, the agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery sector, or producing non-edible products, the synergistic empowerment effect of digital finance and green finance is more significant. However, for agriculture-related enterprises in the decline period, located in central and western regions and balanced production and sales areas, the synergy between digital finance and green finance does not exert promoting effect on new quality productive forces. Based on this, the government should promote the synergistic development of digital finance and green finance, strengthen financial supervision and intellectual property protection, and implement differentiated support strategies to boost the development of new quality productive forces in agriculture-related enterprises.