Toward a quadruple bottom line: Social disclosure and financial performance in the banking sector

Abstract

The present study aims to analyze the existence of a possible significant relationship between social disclosure and financial performance in banking institutions. This phenomenon was analyzed by considering the percentage of female executives on boards, and the implementation of the equal opportunity policy when it was applied. We used a sample of 61 banks from European Union countries (between 2015-2017), and sampling was environmental, social, or governance (ESG)-driven in order to capture the effect of non-financial disclosure provided by Bloomberg. A cross-section econometric model was built in order to examine the relationship between the percentage of female directors on boards and the equal opportunity policy. Both the independent variables of banks and performance indicators were adopted as dependent variables. Our study provides empirical evidence that while there is a lack of efficiency and performance when boards are fragmented, the enactments of equal opportunity policies create a good reputation for the firm and the positive performance of staff. The study aims to contribute to the ongoing debate on social sustainability and on the phenomenon of the glass ceiling, and provides political and entrepreneurial implications.