Unlock Your Firm Value with ESG Performance? Evidence from ASX-Listed Companies

Jingyan Zhou; Wen Hua Sharpe; Abdel K. Halabi; Helen Song; Sisira Colombage

doi:10.3390/jrfm18050247

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Unlock Your Firm Value with ESG Performance? Evidence from ASX-Listed Companies

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Unlock Your Firm Value with ESG Performance? Evidence from ASX-Listed Companies

Jingyan Zhou, Wen Hua Sharpe, Abdel K. Halabi, Helen Song and Sisira Colombage

Journal of Risk and Financial Management, Vol.18(5), pp.1-30

2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm18050247

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Abstract

ESG

supply chain

firm value

Australia

corporate governance

board independence

audit quality

A research gap exists concerning the moderating roles of corporate governance mechanisms on the nexus of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance and firm value. This study aims to address this gap in the Australian corporate context. We examine whether ESG performance can enhance firm value and whether this relationship is moderated by the corporate governance mechanisms to balance stakeholder interests. Drawing on a sample from the ASX, we find that while high ESG performance can increase firm value, this effect diminishes in the presence of the large number of supply chain contracts. We further discovered a negative moderating effect of board independence and audit quality on ESG performance and firm value. Our findings highlight the contingent nature of ESG value creation, indicating that while ESG activities can enhance firm value, their impact depends on firms’ governance context and contractual arrangements that shape shareholders’ outcomes collectively.

Details

Title: Unlock Your Firm Value with ESG Performance? Evidence from ASX-Listed Companies
Authors: Jingyan Zhou (Corresponding Author) - Federation University
Wen Hua Sharpe - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Business and Creative Industries
Abdel K. Halabi (Corresponding Author) - Federation University
Helen Song - Federation University
Sisira Colombage - Federation University
Publication details: Journal of Risk and Financial Management, Vol.18(5), pp.1-30
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date published: 2025
DOI: 10.3390/jrfm18050247
ISSN: 1911-8074; 1911-8066
Copyright note: © 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Data Availability: The data used in this study is available from the Refinitiv (now named LSEG) at https://www.lseg.com.
Organisation Unit: School of Business and Creative Industries
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991134406102621
Output Type: Journal article

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