The digital-sustainability nexus: Host country resource alignment and supply chain digitalization in global acquisitions

Global production systems are increasingly shaped by digital transformation and sustainability pressures, altering how multinational firms expand and coordinate their international operations. In this context, supply chain digitalisation (SCD) has emerged as an important capability that enhances transparency, coordination, and efficiency across global value chains. However, limited research has examined how national-level digital capabilities influence the value outcomes of cross-border acquisitions (CBAs), particularly when firms invest in resource-dependent host economies. This study investigates whether higher levels of SCD in the home country increase the value of CBAs and whether host-country natural resource endowments moderate this relationship. Drawing on internalisation theory and the dynamic capabilities perspective, we hypothesise that stronger SCD capabilities enhance CBA value by improving coordination and integration across international operations, while resource-intensive host environments weaken these benefits. Using a global panel dataset of 111,587 country–pair–year observations of CBAs from 2000 to 2023, findings show that higher levels of home-country SCD significantly increase the value of CBAs. However, the positive effect of SCD weakens when acquisitions occur in host countries with greater dependence on natural resources. Conceptually, the study integrates SCD capabilities with host-country locational characteristics to explain value creation in CBAs. Practically, the findings highlight the importance of aligning digital transformation strategies with effective resource governance to support sustainable international investment.