Impact of Financial Reform on High-Quality Entrepreneurship Among Farmers: Evidence from a Quasi-Natural Experiment Based on the Multi-Period Difference-in-Differences Method

Financial reform has become a key driver in promoting high-quality entrepreneurship among farmers and fostering rural economic development. This study exploits the establishment of national-level Financial Reform Pilot Zones (FRPs) as a quasi-natural experiment. By applying a time-varying difference-in-differences (DID) model to seven waves of China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) data (2010–2022), we find that: (1) Financial reform significantly promotes high-quality entrepreneurship among farmers. (2) This effect is primarily driven by the expansion of digital inclusive finance, while the social credit system serves as a significant positive moderator in the relationship between financial reform and entrepreneurial quality. (3) Further analysis reveals significant heterogeneity across different functional types of FRPs and across different industry. The overarching goal of this study is to causally identify whether and how financial reform influences the quality of rural entrepreneurship. Our findings provide empirical evidence and scalable insights for developing economies seeking to implement financial supply-side structural reform.