In February 2026, the paper titled “Sustainable regulation, stronger currencies: Evidence from capital flow dynamics“ coauthored by Dr. Sining Liu from the Business School of Soochow University, and Dr. Wendi Huang from the University of Manchester, was published online in the Journal of International Money and Finance. The paper is available at the following link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jimonfin.2026.103531. The Journal of International Money and Financeis a high-quality journal in the field of international finance and is rated as an ABS 3 journal.

This study reveals a positive relationship between ESG regulation and currency returns. Using a staggered Difference-in-Differences approach across 48 countries, the study finds that countries adopting mandatory ESG disclosure laws experience significantly higher real currency returns than those without such regulations. The increase in currency returns is driven by growth in net capital flows, which primarily results from a significant reduction in capital outflows. The study further notes that despite ESG regulation influences capital flows through multiple channels, the increase in net capital flows is mainly attributable to the mitigation of ESG-related risks—a finding that highlights the role of socially responsible investors. By directly linking ESG regulation to the foreign exchange market, this study provides novel empirical evidence for understanding the broader implications of ESG regulation in international asset markets.

Sining Liu, a lecturer in the Department of Fintech at the Business School, received her Ph.D. in Finance from the University of Hong Kong in 2023. In the same year, she was selected as an Outstanding Young Scholar of Soochow University and was awarded the Jiangsu Provincial Innovation and Entrepreneurship Doctoral Program. Her primary research interests include asset pricing, international finance, and macro-finance, with a focus on research related to pricing factors in currency markets and the impact of policy environments on currency markets. Her papers have been presented at leading conferences in finance and economics e.g., WFA, SFS Cavalcade, EFA, CICF, and CFRC. She has served as an anonymous reviewer for journals such as the Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money and Emerging Markets Finance and Trade.