Environmental Disclosure in Financial Institutions: A Critical Review of the Literature

We map academic studies on climate-related risks and environmental disclosures focusing on financial institutions. The bibliometric analysis highlights and discusses the relevant contributions and influential research streams of the main studies. Our analysis may help both policymakers, in terms of outlining their actions to meet disclosure requirements and standards, and academics, to provide focus for their future research. We argue that more empirical research is needed to understand whether further disclosure requirements could add value to reporting institutions. Further research investigating which market and/or financial institutions’ specific characteristics enhance such disclosure could help fully understand the interconnections between disclosure of environmental risks and firms’ values. More attention should be paid to the insurance sector. Finally, disclosure of information about specific areas of the financial institutions’ businesses that have not yet been sufficiently considered, such as lending and underwriting, should be emphasized to increase disclosure effectiveness.