Track Description
The EU Taxonomy is one of the European Commission’s pillars for channeling capital flows toward low-emission activities that comply with environmental and sustainable criteria. The introduction of the EU Taxonomy is a considerable challenge to companies with respect to embedding sustainability criteria, ESG data collection and management, and re-examining business processes (Garcia-Torea et al., 2024; Hummel et al., 2024). Additionally, companies must disclose environmental information in their annual reports that explain how their activities align with the objectives of the Taxonomy. According to the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), companies are required to disclose how they integrate sustainability risks and factors into their investment decision-making processes (Paoloni & Modaffari, 2025; Distefano et al., 2025; Gebhardt et al., 2024). The two regulatory frameworks, together with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) aim to enhance corporate transparency and guide markets toward a net-zero economy consistent with the objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

On the other hand, compliance with the EU Taxonomy has potential strategic benefits for companies, including increased legitimacy and access to financing. The Taxonomy may also change dynamics in sustainable finance and capital raising instruments such as green bonds or innovative finance instruments.

The main pillar of the sustainability agenda, as circular economy, biodiversity, climate change, and social equity, therefore could play a significant role in the process of capital attraction. However, although from a theoretical standpoint these sustainable factors should enhance the ability to attract capital aimed at achieving broader corporate goals, evidence on this relationship remains limited. For this reason, the purpose of this track is to investigate how the EU Taxonomy and the recent related regulations are contributing to the development of the sustainable finance phenomenon (Zhang et al. 2025). Specifically, the track aims to contribute to the theory of sustainability reporting and sustainable finance. Several topics covered by the track (though not exhaustive) are listed below:

• Aligning business practices with the Taxonomy criteria;
• Sustainable finance implications for markets and investors;
• The influence of the EU Taxonomy and SFDR on investment decision-making; and firms’ financing strategies;
• EU Taxonomy, comparability principle and sustainability reporting;
• Circular economy, biodiversity, climate change, and social equity in attracting finance.

The track welcomes both conceptual and empirical contributions using qualitative, quantitative, or mixed approaches. Contributions may focus on specific industries, corporate governance practices, reporting frameworks, or innovative financial instruments, and are expected to provide insights that advance both theory and practice in sustainable finance and sustainability reporting. Comparative perspectives across EU Member States and non-EU contexts are also encouraged.