The Efficiency of Intellectual Capital Value Creation and Trade Credit Financing—Evidence from China A-Shares Listed Companies

Abstract

Intellectual capital, as a resource capable of creating value and enhancing corporate competitiveness, has been proven by existing research to possess financing capabilities from both equity financing and debt financing perspectives. However, no studies have yet focused on whether it may affect corporate trade credit financing. This paper utilizes a sample of A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2020, and employs a panel regression model to investigate the impact of the value creation efficiency of intellectual capital on trade credit financing. The findings suggest that: (1) the overall intellectual capital value creation efficiency in an enterprise facilitates the acquisition of trade credit financing. Upon further examination of human capital, structural capital and relational capital respectively, it is found that only the value creation efficiency of structural capital and relational capital exerts a positive impact on trade credit financing, whereas no significant relationship exists between human capital value creation efficiency and trade credit financing; (2) The attention of analysts and shareholdings of institutional investors have a significant negative regulatory effect on the impact of the overall intellectual capital and relational capital value creation efficiency on trade credit financing; (3) Further research indicates that the effect of intellectual capital value creation efficiency on trade credit financing is significantly heterogeneous under the influence of financing constraint degree, property right nature and market position, and property right nature and market position can play a synergistic role. In other words, the promoting effect of value creation efficiency of overall intellectual capital, human capital, structural capital and relational capital on trade credit financing is more significant in enterprises with high financing constraints. Relational capital has effects only in state-owned and highly positioned companies, while structural capital is influential only in non-state-owned companies with lower market positioning. This paper contributes empirical evidence to the factors influencing trade credit financing, enriches the research on the economic consequences of the value creation efficiency of enterprise intellectual capital, and provides a theoretical foundation for enterprises and stakeholders to enhance their emphasis on intellectual capital, a critical resource.