The three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) have published a call for evidence on greenwashing to gather feedback on how to understand the key features, drivers and risks associated with greenwashing.

The authorities, the European Banking Authority (EBA), the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), also want to collect examples of potential greenwashing practices.

As demand for sustainability-related products is growing, and the regulatory regimes and sustainability-related product offerings are rapidly evolving, the authorities stated that the call for evidence was also motivated by the need to better understand which areas may become more prone to greenwashing risks.

Furthermore, the ESAs are seeking input on potential greenwashing practices relevant to various segments of the sustainable investment value chain and of the financial product lifecycle.

The call for evidence will help inform policy making and supervision by obtaining a more granular understanding of greenwashing.

The ESAs also hope this will help foster the reliability of sustainability-related claims.

Within the call for evidence, the term ‘greenwashing’ is used broadly, which recognises that sustainability-related claims can be linked to all aspects of the ESG spectrum.

Entities from across the pensions sector are welcome to contribute to the survey, and these contributions should focus on greenwashing risks and occurrences arising in the pension industry and affecting pension products or services.

The call for evidence was issues in the context of mandates received from the European Commission in May 2022.

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