Navigating banking sector concentration and institutional quality for sustainable energy development: insights from Belt and Road Initiative countries

This study analyses banking concentration, institutional quality, and energy sustainability in the BRI countries from 2000 to 2023. The empirical evidence indicates that high banking sector concentration has a negative effect on energy sustainability while high institutional quality has multiplier effect on energy sustainability. In addition, institutional quality was found to influence the ability to reduce the negative impacts of banking concentration on energy sustainability significantly. The study underscores that there is the need to link financial diversification and corporate governance to enhance sustainable energy. Hence, the results of this study offer relevant information for policy formulation for sustainable energy and economic development using sound institutions for related countries' financial institutions. Also, the study establishes the positive externality of robust institutions in achieving sustainable energy goals thus leading to minimum environmental problems as well as supporting steady economic growth.