The effect of regulation in moderating the influence of the internet on Asian stock indices through the mediation of income inequality

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Abstract

There is a phenomenon where, although most Asian countries experience high stock price indices growth, at the same time, there are still several Asian countries that are included in the category of the poorest countries in Asia. This study explains the relationship between income inequality and stock price indices growth and what factors can narrow income inequality, which is a combination of many previous studies, including research from Isojärvi and Jerow (2024) and Yunga et al. (2022). The population in this study is from all Asian countries. The samples used were taken using stratified random sampling techniques from 2020 to 2025. The results of the study prove the importance of a country having a quality internet network at competitive rates to support internet shopping, which is guaranteed by good regulations to support internet network users to increase the income inequality indices. The narrowing of the income gap leads to an increase in the purchasing power of the wider community, which increases the consumption and sales of businesses. This increases the company’s profits and ensures positive sentiment and economic stability, which ultimately pushes the stock price indices higher. Another finding is that the function of regulatory policy turns out to have a unique influence on income inequality.

Keywords: Stock Price Indices, Regulatory Policies, Sustainability, Internet Development, Income Inequality

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization — B.B.T.; Methodology — B.B.T.; Software — A.S.L.; Validation — A.S.L.; Formal Analysis — B.B.T.; Investigation — B.B.T.; Resources — B.B.T.; Data Curation — B.B.T.; Writing — Original Draft — B.B.T.; Writing — Review & Editing — B.B.T. and A.S.L.; Visualization — A.S.L.; Supervision — A.S.L.; Project Administration — A.S.L.; Funding Acquisition — B.B.T.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

JEL Classification: D63, L86, Q56, R38, R53

Received: 21.11.2025
Revised: 21.02.2026; 13.03.2026
Accepted: 20.03.2026
Published online: 23.03.2026

How to cite this paper: Tjandrasa, B. B., & Lehman, A. S. (2026). The effect of regulation in moderating the influence of the internet on Asian stock indices through the mediation of income inequality. Risk Governance and Control: Financial Markets & Institutions, 16(1), 187–195. https://doi.org/10.22495/rgcv16i1p16