An Empirical Analysis on the Risk Reduction Effect of Chinese Enterprises Cross-Border Acquisitions by International Students in China

International students are becoming increasingly significant in the economy and society due to globalization. This paper uses the data of cross-border M&A of Chinese enterprises from 2003 to 2019 and the data of global international students in China to investigate the impact of international students in China on overseas M&A of Chinese enterprises. Our analysis shows that non-degree program students in China have a more significant impact on Chinese enterprises’ overseas M&A than degree program students. Overseas students in China promote the development of Chinese enterprises’ overseas M&A but also encourage Chinese enterprises to carry out M&A in the target country by lowering the target country’s national risk. The results of the heterogeneity analysis show that there are differences in market types and purposes for studying in China.