The Impact of ESG Performance on Financing Strategies for Chinese E-commerce Retail Platforms — A Case Study of Suning.com

Abstract

Corporate ESG performance has emerged as the key to investment and finance for e-commerce platforms against the backdrop of global sustainable development. This article specifically investigates the following research question: How does ESG performance impact the financing strategies of Chinese e-commerce retail platforms such as Suning.com? China's e-commerce retail industry is currently confronted with two hurdles after a period of fast expansion: handling transformation pressures and optimizing financing structures. In order to investigate how e-commerce retail platforms improve their financing capacities through ESG management, this article uses Suning.com as a representative case study and builds a framework connecting "ESG performance – information disclosure – policy alignment – financing strategy optimisation." Converting ESG strengths into financial competitiveness is the main area of research interest. The results show that insufficient ESG standards make financial challenges worse in the current era of high-quality development for e-commerce retail platforms. By reducing risks, increasing transparency, and utilizing legislative incentives, efficient ESG implementation maximizes financing solutions. Additionally, industry-specific traits and policy alignment must be the focus of such activities. The findings verify that e-commerce platforms face more severe funding difficulties as a result of inadequate ESG measures. By giving e-commerce platforms a mechanism to optimize finance through ESG implementation and offering investors some assistance, this research enhances industry studies in the ESG arena. It is extremely important both theoretically and practically.