Mobile Broadband, R&amp;D Intensity, and Cash‐Based Financial Infrastructure as Drivers of <scp>SDG</scp> Performance: Evidence From High‐Performing European Countries

ABSTRACT This study examines the effects of mobile broadband, R&amp;D intensity, and cash‐based financial infrastructure on SDG performance in selected high‐performing European countries over the period 2010–2022. In order to determine whether these relationships vary not only at the level of average effects but also across different levels of SDG performance, the analysis draws on quantile‐based methods in addition to mean‐based estimators. According to the findings obtained from the baseline model, long‐run analysis, robustness and sensitivity checks, R&amp;D intensity and mobile broadband use have statistically significant and positive effects on SDG performance. By contrast, ATM density, interpreted as an indicator of cash‐based financial infrastructure and an earlier stage of financial digitalization, is negatively associated with SDG performance. The quantile estimates further reveal that, although the direction of these effects remains stable, their magnitude varies across the distribution of SDG performance. Overall, the findings indicate that, in advanced sustainability settings, SDG performance is shaped not simply by the expansion of infrastructure, but by the specific forms through which digital connectivity, innovation effort, and financial access are organized. The results underscore the importance of strengthening innovation capacity, expanding inclusive broadband‐based digital connectivity, and promoting financial infrastructures that are more closely aligned with sustainable development.