How does digital RMB encourage enterprises' oversea investment behaviors? Evidence from the pilot project of e-CNY

This study uses a difference-in-differences (DID) approach from 2014 to 2024 to explore how the cross-border pilot of Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP) affected enterprises' overseas investment patterns. The DCEP pilot reduces transaction costs and risks, boosts investment efficiency, and improves transaction transparency through blockchain and intelligent contract automation, facilitating firms' international investments. This encourages enterprises to invest internationally, increasing their frequency and size. The policy effect reduces information asymmetry and moral hazard by increasing transaction transparency and investment decision-making efficiency, improving settlement processes, and real-time financial data analysis. These findings enhance digital currency and international finance literature by emphasizing CBDCs' role in enabling cross-border capital flows and providing policymakers with practical insights to promote outward investment and economic globalization through digital innovation.