Exploring the Relationship Between Corporate Governance and Financial Performance: The Moderating Effect of Fintech Innovation

Following the global financial crisis, corporate governance has become a focal point for scholars, economists, regulators, and governments. While many authors have conducted studies on the relationship between corporate governance and financial performance, there are still inconsistent or uncertain results regarding the impact of corporate governance mechanisms, such as board characteristics, ownership structure, and ownership concentration, on financial performance. As fintech innovation has emerged as a new trend in economic development, it has also become an important factor that affects corporate governance and performance. Therefore, this study aims to explain the effect of fintech innovation as a moderator in the relationship between corporate governance mechanisms (board characteristics, ownership structure, and ownership concentration) and financial performance. The study utilizes panel data analysis and covers a sample of 4592 firms listed on the Shenzhen and Shanghai stock exchanges from 2010 to 2022.