The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority has issued guidance for financial firms using artificial intelligence to manage environmental, social and governance data. The guidance, the first output from its Innovationskompassen industry dialogue initiative, stresses that firms remain responsible for ESG data regardless of whether it is produced manually or with AI. Applicable requirements depend largely on how the data will be used, including for corporate lending, risk management and sustainability reporting. Presented as 12 questions and answers, the guidance addresses the definition of AI, data quality and the use of subcontractors. Firms should understand the role AI played in producing information and assess the resulting need to trace, verify or review it, particularly where AI processes data or makes assessments rather than simply extracting information. Several answers focus on credit institutions because industry discussions identified a particular need for guidance when ESG data supports risk management and lending decisions. The authority is evaluating proposals for further Innovationskompassen topics and aims to begin its next guidance project later in fall 2026.
Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority issues guidance on using AI to manage ESG data
The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority has issued guidance on financial firms’ use of AI to manage ESG data, emphasizing that firms retain responsibility for the information regardless of how it is produced. The 12 questions and answers address data quality, traceability, subcontractors and applicable rules, with particular attention to banks using ESG data for risk management and lending.