ZBB 2026, 63
Green Rhetoric, Grey Reality: Algorithmic Detection and ESG Oversight in Financial Markets
This paper investigates the systemic opacity and semantic vagueness characterizing environmental claims in the non-financial disclosures of major European banking institutions. By cross-referencing the emerging European legal framework – in particular after the introduction of the new Directive 2024/825 – with empirical findings obtained through algorithmic analysis of consolidated sustainability reports, the paper exposes widespread use of vague, unverifiable, and prospective ESG statements that could qualify as misleading under EU law. Using a Python-based natural language processing tool, the study identifies recurrent linguistic patterns that diverge from the transparency, verifiability, and measurability standards now mandated. It argues for the adoption of algorithmic auditing both as a preventive compliance mechanism and as a regulatory enforcement tool, proposing a shift towards a new model of semantic supervision capable of aligning rhetorical ESG narratives with demonstrable corporate commitments.
Contents
- I. Introduction
- II. The European Regulatory Framework on Sustainability: Transparency, Verifiability, and the Fight Against Greenwashing
- III. Automated Analysis of Environmental Disclosures: A Case Study on Banking Sector Compliance with EU Greenwashing Regulations
- IV. From Rhetoric to Regulation: Algorithmic Standards for ESG Disclosure Compliance
- V. Reassessing Misleading ESG Claims Through a Tripartite Legal-Economic Framework
- VI. Conclusions
- *
- *)Dr., Adjunct Professor at the University of Bologna; Affiliate of the Transatlantic Technology Law Forum at Stanford University, Stanford Law School
Der Inhalt dieses Beitrags ist nicht frei verfügbar.
Für Abonnenten ist der Zugang zu Aufsätzen und Rechtsprechung frei.
Sollten Sie über kein Abonnement verfügen, können Sie den gewünschten Beitrag trotzdem kostenpflichtig erwerben:
Erwerben Sie den gewünschten Beitrag kostenpflichtig per Rechnung.
Erwerben Sie den gewünschten Beitrag kostenpflichtig mit PayPal.
