Do Cooperative Bank Ties Make Small Businesses Greener? Evidence from Italy

Beatrice Di Marco (), Giovanni Ferri () and Marco Pini ()
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Beatrice Di Marco: LUMSA University, Rome, Italy
Giovanni Ferri: LUMSA University, Rome, Italy; HURfuture Research Center
Marco Pini: Centro Studi delle Camere di Commercio Guglielmo Tagliacarne

No wphurf04, HURfuture Working Papers from HURfuture - Human Relations for the Future Research Center

Abstract: Investors increasingly assess firms using broader performance measures beyond return on equity, emphasizing ESG (environmental, social and governance) outcomes. Micro- and small-sized enterprises (MSEs), which traditionally rely on cooperative banks to ease credit constraints, now face growing pressure to adopt sustainable practices. This shift calls for re-examining whether relationships with credit cooperative banks (CCBs) enhance not only credit access but also ESG performance. Using data from the 2023 Tagliacarne Institute Survey in Italy, the study develops an innovative metric and applies an instrumental variables approach to address endogeneity. Results are robust and show a positive ESG effect, particularly when firms are geographically close to CCB branches.

Keywords: Cooperative banks; Small businesses; Access to credit; ESG performance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G21 L25 L26 L31 M14 P13 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 31 pages
Date: 2026-08
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