Blockchain Technology, Environmental Risk Perception, and Sustainable Renewable Energy Governance: A Cross‐Country Configurational Analysis of SMEs in Emerging Asian Economies

Small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) face mounting pressure to align their operations with sustainability imperatives, yet the mechanisms through which blockchain technology enables Sustainable Renewable Energy Governance (SREG) remain poorly understood across different institutional contexts. Grounded in the Technology‐Organization‐Environment (TOE) framework and Institutional Theory, this study examines how Decentralization Benefits, Cost Efficiency, Stakeholder Trust, and Regulatory Support shape SREG, with Environmental Risk Perception as a mediator and Institutional Quality as a proposed moderator. Drawing on survey data from 362 SME managers across Bangladesh ( n = 211) and Malaysia ( n = 151), the study employs PLS‐SEM, Measurement Invariance of Composite Models (MICOM), Multi‐Group Analysis (MGA), Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA), and fuzzy‐set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA). Findings reveal that Cost Efficiency, Stakeholder Trust, Regulatory Support, and Environmental Risk Perception are significant direct predictors of SREG, while Decentralization Benefits operate indirectly through heightened risk perception. Notably, Institutional Quality does not significantly moderate the risk perception–governance relationship in either country context, suggesting that blockchain‐enabled governance mechanisms function largely independently of the surrounding institutional environment. Multi‐group analysis confirms that structural relationships are broadly stable across the two country samples. Configurational analysis further reveals that SREG emerges through a near‐complete conjunction of enabling conditions rather than multiple equifinal pathways. These findings enrich TOE and Institutional Theory by identifying boundary conditions of institutional moderation in technology‐enabled sustainability transitions and provide actionable guidance for SME managers and policymakers in emerging Asian economies.