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April 28, 2022
Results of a nationwide survey: Retail investors’ support for the SEC mandating climate-related financial disclosures from public companies
A nationwide survey of retail investors was conducted between March 18 and 29, 2022, by Embold Research on behalf of Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund and Public Citizen. Broadly, these survey results show that investors care about climate-related risks and opportunities of public companies, support the SEC requiring climate-related disclosures with third-party audit, and would factor the information disclosed into their investment practices.
Support for SEC Climate Disclosures
Seventy percent (70%) of investors surveyed support the SEC requiring all public corporations to disclose standardized information about their financial risks due to climate change, including risks due to new regulations, competing technologies, and consumer demand changes.
To make smart, sustainable investment decisions, investors and the public want—and need—more standardized information about companies’ growing climate financial risk, their contribution to climate change, and their plans for remaining solvent in a low-carbon economy. According to the survey results,
- only 36% of investors trust voluntary disclosures of climate change risks;
- 58% of investors would trust disclosures made to the SEC; and
- 71% of investors would trust these disclosures if submitted to the SEC and if validated by a third-party auditor.
Factoring Climate Information Into Investment Decisions
Sixty-three percent of investors would factor in information about a corporation’s financial risks related to climate change if that information was audited and disclosed to the SEC.
Fifty-eight percent of investors say they would be likely to factor in information about an investment’s financial risks and opportunities related to climate change if that information was standardized, free, and easy to find.
Demographic Breakdown: A majority of investors in nearly all cohorts would be likely to factor in this information. Notable cohorts more likely to factor in this information were Black or African American investors (73%) and young investors with the longest investment horizons (18-34 years of age, 69%).