Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Economic, Business, and Accounting Studies (ICEBAST 2025)

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The Relationship between Green Finance Awareness and Sustainable Competitiveness of SMEs

Authors
Nurul Huda Mustafa1, Rosmaria Jaffar1, *, Mariana Jusop1, Noor Fadzlina Mohd Fadhil1, Hafiza Aishah Hashim2
1Faculty of Business and Management, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Terengganu, Malaysia
2Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Development, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT), Terengganu, Malaysia
*Corresponding author. Email: rosmaria@unisza.edu.my
Corresponding Author
Rosmaria Jaffar
Available Online 26 December 2025.
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6463-956-8_16How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Green finance; awareness; SMEs; sustainable competitiveness; SDG 9
Abstract

This study examines the role of green finance awareness in enhancing sustainable competitiveness among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which are vital contributors to economic growth, innovation, and employment but increasingly face pressure to adopt sustainable business practices in response to global climate challenges. Using a quantitative design and survey data from 90 SMEs, analyzed through descriptive, correlation, and regression techniques in SPSS, the results indicate that SMEs possess moderate-to-high awareness of green finance and actively engage in sustainability efforts. A strong positive correlation (r = 0.939, p < 0.01) and regression results showing that green finance awareness explains 88.1% of the variance in sustainable competitiveness (β = 0.939, p < 0.000) confirm that greater awareness significantly enhances SME competitiveness. The findings extend Resource-Based View, Stakeholder Theory, and Institutional Theory by identifying awareness as a strategic intangible capability, while practically emphasizing the need for SME leaders to incorporate green finance understanding into decision-making and for policymakers to strengthen awareness campaigns, financial literacy programs, and accessibility to green funding mechanisms. Aligning with SDG 9, this research advances empirical evidence that green finance awareness is not merely informational but a transformative driver for building resilient and competitive SMEs in the green economy.

Copyright
© 2025 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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Volume Title
Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Economic, Business, and Accounting Studies (ICEBAST 2025)
Series
Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research
Publication Date
26 December 2025
ISBN
978-94-6463-956-8
ISSN
2352-5428
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6463-956-8_16How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2025 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Cite this article

risenwbib
TY  - CONF
AU  - Nurul Huda Mustafa
AU  - Rosmaria Jaffar
AU  - Mariana Jusop
AU  - Noor Fadzlina Mohd Fadhil
AU  - Hafiza Aishah Hashim
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/12/26
TI  - The Relationship between Green Finance Awareness and Sustainable Competitiveness of SMEs
BT  - Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Economic, Business, and Accounting Studies (ICEBAST 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 197
EP  - 211
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-956-8_16
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6463-956-8_16
ID  - Mustafa2025
ER  -