Injection of risk: Foreign migrants as a catalyst for firm dynamics in post-industrial periphery

This study investigated the association between migration and entrepreneurial entry and exit rates within structurally disadvantaged post-industrial peripheries. Utilizing an 18-year district-level panel dataset (2007–2024) from the Czech post-industrial mining border periphery (Ústí nad Labem Region), the econometric results revealed various patterns in entrepreneurship, based on the migration origin. While culturally closer EU migrants showed a negative correlation with business registrations, non-EU populations displayed a significant positive association with entrepreneurial entry. Furthermore, the findings indicated even greater heterogeneity. Increases in the Vietnamese population were associated with immediate increases in registrations, without a rise in firm closures, suggesting protective enclave effects. On the other hand, Ukrainian migration inflow showed positive associations with both registrations and closures of firms in the short-term, before a positive registration effect stabilization after 2 years. Finally, the moderation analysis suggested that local economic distress may influence entrepreneurial activity differently depending on institutional and geographic distance.