关键词: ESG, 绿色投资, 最优区分理论, 企业绩效

Abstract: Green investors are a key capital force driving enterprises' green transformation and sustainable development. This paper takes China's CSI 300 listed companies from 2009 to 2023 as samples and, based on the optimal distinctiveness theory, examines the impact of the optimal distinctiveness of enterprises' ESG practices on the entry of green investors. The research findings are as follows. Firstly, the improvement of the optimal distinctiveness of enterprises' ESG practices can attract the entry of green investors. Secondly, mechanism tests show that the optimal distinctiveness attracts green investors by enhancing environmental protection subsidies and the efficiency of environmental protection investment to meet the economic benefits expected by green investors, as well as by improving the quality of ESG information disclosure and corporate reputation to meet the environmental benefits pursued by green investors. Thirdly, heterogeneity tests indicate that legitimacy-oriented ESG practices in pollution-intensive firms are especially effective in attracting green investors, whereas differentiation-oriented ESG practices are more effective in growth-stage and mature firms. Fourthly, economic consequence tests reveal that the entry of green investors can improve enterprises' dual performance in both economic and environmental aspects. The conclusions of this paper not only enrich the research content of ESG ratings but also provide new empirical evidence for enterprises to promote sustainable development from the perspective of green investment.

Key words: ESG, Green Investment, Optimal Distinctiveness Theory, Corporate Performance