Escaping the Financialization Trap: Technological Blockades and Enterprise Financial Asset Allocation
Yixin Dai, Yuhang Xu, Bing Tan
Keywords:
technological blockades, financial asset allocation, supply chain structure, financialization, strategic responses
Abstract:
Amid intensifying global technological competition, external technological blockades have emerged as a critical source of uncertainty that reshapes corporate financial strategies. This study examines whether and how such blockades influence the reconfiguration of financial asset allocation through knowledge-driven strategic adaptation. Using panel data on listed enterprises from 2012 to 2022, we find that technological blockades are associated with dual effects on corporate financialization: a marked decline in the scale of financial assets—reflected in lower financial asset ratios and returns, and a structural shift toward greater portfolio diversification. Theoretically, this study proposes an integrative framework identifying four transmission channels through which blockades may reshape financial behavior: credit leverage contraction, supply chain funding crowding-out, business barrier intensification, and competitiveness weakening. Methodologically, it introduces an analytical framework for assessing scale-structure dual effects in financialization dynamics under exogenous shocks. Notably, the evidence reveals pronounced contextual heterogeneity: both scale and structural effects are concentrated among enterprises with limited core technology reserves, lower TFP, lower market share, lower R&D intensity, and lower patent quality. Furthermore, supply chain concentration, digital transformation, and Industry-University-Research collaboration are found to amplify these effects. These findings offer novel insights into how knowledge constraints may trigger strategic asset reallocation in emerging markets, contributing to innovation systems literature by elucidating financialization adjustment mechanisms under technological pressure. The research offers suggestive, evidence-based guidance for enterprises navigating innovation constraints while maintaining financial resilience.
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 10.7441/joc.2026.03.05
Dai, Y., Xu, Y., & Tan, B. (2026). Escaping the Financialization Trap: Technological Blockades and Enterprise Financial Asset Allocation. Journal of Competitiveness, 16(3), 115–153 https://doi.org/10.7441/joc.2026.03.05
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