Sustainable Economic Development in the Conditions of Digitalization: The Role of the Financial Market in Capital Mobilization for the Implementation of ESG Strategies of Enterprises

Abstract

Existing studies predominantly examine the impact of ESG performance on enterprises’ financial outcomes or the effect of digitalization on ESG strategies in isolation, while the mechanisms of capital mobilization through a digitally transformed financial market – as the connecting link between these two processes – remain insufficiently conceptualized; there is a limited number of studies that take into account the specific characteristics of the financial markets in countries that are undergoing both postwar recovery and adaptation to European integration. The aim of this article is to develop a comprehensive scientific-analytical conception of the interaction between the digital transformation of the financial market and capital mobilization for the implementation of enterprises’ ESG strategies, with the formulation of practical recommendations applicable to Ukraine’s conditions. A problem-oriented methodological strategy was applied during the research, combining a systemic approach, critical analysis, and comparative analysis. The study substantiates the conceptual triad «Digitalization – ESG – Capital» comprising three channels of influence (informational, operational, and structural); systematizes the technological tools of digital ESG financing (blockchain, AI-scoring, tokenization); identifies a shift in the global sustainable debt instruments market from extensive growth to a phase of qualitative «maturation»; and determines seven organizational prerequisites and six strategic directions for mobilizing ESG capital for Ukrainian enterprises. The article proposes a conceptual triad that systematically explains the contradictory findings of prior research regarding the relationship between digitalization and ESG performance; the methodology for forming an ESG capital mobilization architecture for countries combining postwar recovery with European integration has been further developed. The practical value of the research results lies in the opinion that the six formulated strategic directions for ESG capital mobilization can underpin roadmaps for implementing the EU taxonomy and developing ESG rating infrastructure in the domestic financial sector. The seven identified organizational prerequisites for successful ESG capital attraction enable enterprises to self-assess their readiness for entering the sustainable finance market and serve as a benchmark for institutional changes in corporate governance, reporting, and communication strategy.