This study systematically explores the dynamic transition mechanism of corporate M&A value creation under the capital market registration-based system reform, grounded in a theoretical framework encompassing policy impact, M&A value niche adaptation, and value leapfrogging.
Drawing on ecological niche theory, this study takes M&A activities of A-share listed companies from 2014 to 2024 as the research sample, using STATA 17.0 for data processing. Patent data for listed companies are sourced from the National Intellectual Property Administration, while data on M&A events, goodwill, and control variables are primarily retrieved from the CSMAR database series to systematically examine M&A value creation driven by the registration-based system reform.
The registration-based system reform facilitates corporate value creation in the high-value-driven-low-risk-loss (HL) niche through two channels: information disclosure quality and regulatory investigation intensity. The reform's leapfrogging effect on enterprises' value niche toward high-drive and low-risk levels is more pronounced in vertical M&A, STAR Market-listed firms, and enterprises without foreign ownership. Under the reform context, enhanced M&A value strengthens value capture by mitigating goodwill impairment risk, ultimately forming a positive cycle.
Distinct from existing literature on M&A value, this study integrates the value-oriented characteristics of technological innovation under the registration-based system reform. For the first time, it categorizes M&A value niches into the four types mentioned above, based on the value-driven dimension (characterized by patent knowledge breadth) and the value depletion risk dimension (reflected by the scale of M&A goodwill), thereby providing a precise positioning framework for analyzing relevant influences. It also clarifies the mechanism through which the reform drives a positive dynamic leap in M&A value creation—from a low-value-driven-high-risk-loss state to the HL state.
