Mandatory vs. Voluntary: A Comparative Study of ESG Disclosure in Italian and Brazilian Credit Unions
Keywords:
SDG, ESG, GRI, Sustainability reporting, CCBs, Credit unions, hybrid modelAbstract
Purpose: This paper investigates ESG disclosure coverage and reported SDG alignment within the credit union sectors of Brazil and Italy, examining how divergent institutional environments shape the transparency of mutual financial institutions operating under hybrid economic and social missions.
Design/methodology/approach: A longitudinal comparative analysis (2021–2024) was conducted on major credit cooperatives (Sicredi, Sicoob, Iccrea, Cassa Centrale). The methodology employs web scraping via Stata® to track GRI indicator frequencies, a Sustainability Coverage Index (SCI), and Multivariate Correspondence Analysis (MCA).
Findings: Italian credit unions exhibit higher overall disclosure indices, reflecting compliance with stringent European regulations. Conversely, Brazilian credit unions prioritize localized goals like community development and financial education. While reflecting structural tensions between coercive regulatory pressures and voluntary identity-signaling, the data highlight a shared focus on core mutualistic values, softening over-deterministic cross-country dichotomies.
Research limitations/implications: Focusing on the largest networks may not fully reflect smaller, independent cooperatives. Theoretically, while indicator frequencies effectively proxy disclosure extent, future research should employ sentiment analysis to capture qualitative corporate motivations.
Practical implications: The results suggest that rigid standardization can prompt symbolic box-ticking. Regulators should balance mandatory compliance with enough flexibility to preserve the territorial, mutualistic identity — the social soul — of cooperative financial intermediaries.
Originality/value: This research provides a systematic cross-country comparison of credit unions under contrasting regulatory architectures (European CSRD vs. evolving Brazilian Central Bank regulations), offering new insights into how institutional pressures and social identity concurrently influence non-financial disclosure.
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