Digital Disruption in the Sustainable Age: The Role of ICT in Shaping ESG Initiatives

Abstract

Information and communication technology (ICT) has revolutionised the financial industry by making it technologically sound and efficient in communication, improving accessibility, customer service, and efficiency. The main purpose of this research is to determine how ICT affects the adoption of ESG (environmental, social, and governance) principles in the Indian banking sector. Based on data from the CMIE Prowess database and the official websites of 24 Indian banks, the analysis uses static panel data regression models (interaction and basic) across 12 years from 2010 to 2022. The analysis is done in Python. The results of the base model show that ICT hurts ESG scores. The interaction model, however, shows that the positive correlation between ICT and ESG ratings is substantially enhanced by competitive dynamics. This study provides a comprehensive overview of how sustainability efforts and technology adoption interplay in the Indian financial sector.