Digital Inclusive Finance and Government Spending Efficiency: Evidence from County-Level Data in China’s Yangtze River Delta

Amid the global drive to enhance public sector performance in the digital economy era, improving government spending efficiency has become a critical governance objective. This study investigates the impact of digital inclusive finance on government spending efficiency from a digital finance systems perspective using county-level panel data in China’s Yangtze River Delta for the period 2014–2022 and constructing the fixed-effects model and instrumental variable method to estimate the effect of digital inclusive finance and explore its underlying mechanisms. Heterogeneity across regions with varying economic development levels is analyzed, and fiscal pressure is examined as a potential mediating factor. The results indicate that (1) digital inclusive finance significantly enhances government spending efficiency, primarily through broad service coverage and deep usage of digital financial services such as mobile payments, digital credit, and insurance; (2) the positive effect is more pronounced in counties with lower government spending efficiency and economic development; and (3) fiscal pressure acts as a key transmission channel, with broader digital inclusive finance coverage helping to alleviate fiscal stress and improve government spending efficiency. These findings offer empirical insights into the role of digital finance in promoting effective and adaptive public financial governance.