Does the EU sustainable finance disclosure regulation mitigate greenwashing?
研究欧盟《可持续金融披露条例》对股票型共同基金“漂绿”行为的影响，发现该条例显著降低了第九条基金的漂绿指数，但对第八条基金效果不明显。
This paper examines the impact of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) on greenwashing by equity mutual funds in the EU. We propose a unique measure called the Greenwashing Index, based on a fund's decarbonisation effort relative to its flows, to quantify the level of greenwashing. Using a difference-in-differences analysis, we find that following the enactment of the SFDR, Article 9 funds experience a lower level in their greenwashing index relative to a control group of funds. However, for Article 8 funds we do not observe any significant reduction in the level of their greenwashing index relative to the same control group. We also use a regression discontinuity design (RDD) and find that the decline in the greenwashing index is more concentrated in Article 9 than in Article 8 funds which indicates a different effect of the SFDR on greenwashing behaviour between those funds. Our findings also show that Article 9 funds decarbonise their portfolios by primarily following a portfolio tilting strategy to overweight low carbon-intensive holdings following the introduction of the SFDR.