Capital structure refers to the composition and proportional allocation of debt and equity capital within a firm’s total financing structure, reflecting both its financing composition and risk preferences. In the new stage of development, Specialized, Refined, Differential, and Innovational (SRDI) enterprises have become strategically important actors in serving national development strategies, facilitating industrial upgrading, safeguarding industrial security, and promoting firm growth. As critical drivers of industrial upgrading and technological innovation, it is therefore necessary to systematically examine the capital structure characteristics of SRDI enterprises and their underlying determinants. Based on a benchmark regression framework, this study introduces interaction terms involving financing constraints, regional conditions, and industry characteristics to conduct empirical analysis.The results show that SRDI enterprises are more inclined than non-SRDI enterprises to maintain persistently lower leverage ratios. Financing constraints significantly strengthen the low-leverage feature of SRDI firms, while an improved financing environment magnifies their capital structure advantages associated with low leverage. Moreover, the negative effect of SRDI status on leverage ratios displays marked regional disparities, with especially strong effects in certain regions. Industry heterogeneity analysis further suggests that SRDI-oriented development policies exhibit cross-industry consistency and general applicability in optimizing firms’ capital structures. Corresponding policy implications from three perspectives are put forward around regional financing environments, credit evaluation frameworks of financial institutions, and firms’ own financing decisions.
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