From Legalities to Substance in Sustainability Reporting

Hundreds of major companies in Europe have started reporting new regulatory sustainability data according to recent regulations. The EU Taxonomy, which pioneered the implementation of detailed quantitative disclosures since 2022, is at the forefront of these changes. In some sense, this is a new accounting standard for companies, and at its core, it is straightforward and easy to understand.

EU Taxonomy provides the ultimate regulatory definition of an environmentally sustainable business. Essentially, it quantifies the shares of revenues and expenses deemed sustainable according to legal definitions, referred to as the main KPIs. Additionally, it offers extensive data detailing specific sustainable activities that companies are involved in and their contributions to environmental goals such as climate change mitigation and adaptation.

However, this valuable data remains largely inaccessible to the public. While the internet is replete with information about sustainability regulations, requirements, and disclosures, discussions often focus on legal definitions, deadlines, and regulatory specifics. These details may be unintelligible and uninteresting to the average financial professional, not to mention the general public.

Reporting companies tend to hide crucial data in the middle of their 500-page annual reports, without any attempt to highlight it in their ESG communication agenda. As for analysts and journalists, with the exception of a few random analyses, there is practically no public discourse about the substance of these new corporate non-financial accounts.

However, the introduction of sustainability disclosure regulations aimed to combat greenwashing, make businesses comparable, and enhance economic transparency from a sustainability standpoint. In essence, they sought to significantly improve upon traditional arbitrary ESG disclosures, unverified claims, and ratings, if not replace them entirely. The bureaucratic complexity and mundane nature of these regulations were likely an inevitable side effect, but they certainly were not the end goal or the spirit of the regulations.

Why the whole public discourse revolves mainly around the legal and compliance aspects, and why reporting companies often treat it as a compliance nuisance, is a separate subject. However, the whole sustainability movement would benefit from switching the focus to the substance of the regulations—what companies actually report and how this information can be used to improve financial decisions and achieve sustainable development goals.

At ComplyTaxonomy, we have amassed the most comprehensive database of regulatory sustainability disclosures across European public and non-public companies, featuring unrivaled data integrity and scope. This standardized, verified, and legally defined sustainability data is well-suited for thorough analyses, aggregation and meaning research. The available data already enables seamless analysis across time, sectors, and economies and is set to expand further in 2025-26, covering much of the European economy as the regulations grow.

Furthermore, we have decided to offer this data in a freemium format to help spread knowledge as widely as possible. Join us to gain unique analytical insights into regulatory sustainability affairs and a glimpse into the sustainability situation of European companies.

Follow us to gain unique analytical insights into regulatory sustainability affairs and a comprehensive view of the sustainability landscape among European companies.

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