Non-Financial Disclosure Assurance: Critical Insights from the Italian Financial Services Sector

Abstract

Directive 2014/95/EU was released with the aim of improving the transparency, comparability and harmonization of non-financial reporting among European undertakings. However, the Directive is vague regarding both non-financial disclosure contents and the transposition of its provisions into national European laws, making it somewhat ambiguous. This issue has been underlined by scholars, who have found the comparison of non-financial disclosures challenging and have not seen a considerable improvement in the level of transparency. This is also mirrored in the assurance process, which remains underexplored. The present exploratory study analyses non-financial disclosure assurance in the Italian financial services sector. Content analysis of the level and features of assurance of non-financial disclosures published in 2020 was conducted. The results show that the ambiguity of the Directive also has consequences for assurance outcomes, which remain limited and strictly adhere to provisions provided by national practitioner associations.