Leaders’ educational backgrounds and Chinese official finance

Abstract This study explores the influence of national leaders’ educational backgrounds, particularly Western education, on their engagement with Chinese official finance (OF) in developing nations. As China’s financial outreach continues to expand, understanding the factors that shape recipient leaders’ financial preferences is increasingly important. We argue that Western-educated leaders are less likely to accept Chinese OF, a tendency rooted in the socialization effects of exposure to Western values and institutional practices. By analyzing data from 2000 to 2020 on leaders’ education and Chinese OF, we find that countries led by Western-educated leaders receive less Chinese funding on average compared to those led by leaders with other educational backgrounds. This finding highlights how educational experiences influence governance preferences and alignment with different international financial sources. These insights contribute to our understanding of how leader-specific characteristics shape international finance dynamics, offering fresh perspectives on the soft power mechanisms underlying global financial relations amid strategic competition among major powers.