Digital transformation has become an imperative strategic agenda for organizations navigating the complexities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Despite the proliferation of digital transformation initiatives globally, empirical evidence regarding the mechanisms through which digital transformation influences organizational performance — particularly in emerging market contexts characterized by institutional voids, resource constraints, and technological infrastructure gaps — remains incomplete. This study examines the relationship between digital transformation and organizational performance, with knowledge management as a mediating variable and leadership style as a moderating variable, among 387 medium and large enterprises operating in five emerging market economies (Nigeria, Indonesia, Brazil, India, and Vietnam). A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was employed, with data analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) with partial least squares estimation (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 4.0. Results revealed that digital transformation had a significant positive direct effect on organizational performance (β = 0.412, p < 0.001), with this relationship fully mediated through knowledge management capabilities (indirect effect: β = 0.274, 95% CI [0.198, 0.351]). Transformational leadership significantly moderated the digital transformation–knowledge management relationship (β = 0.318, p < 0.001), while transactional leadership demonstrated a weaker but significant moderating effect (β = 0.187, p < 0.01). Firms with high digital maturity and transformational leadership exhibited organizational performance scores 43.6% higher than those with low digital maturity and transactional leadership. The model explained 61.4% of variance in organizational performance (R² = 0.614). These findings advance theoretical understanding of digital transformation value creation mechanisms and provide actionable strategic guidance for managers and policymakers in emerging market contexts.