The Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority has published a review of how investment firms and selected fund managers comply with the rules on disclosure of sustainability-related information in the financial sector. Based on supervisory work in 2024 and 2025, the authority finds that most firms have taken steps to meet the requirements, but persistent misunderstandings and misinterpretations often result in disclosures that are unclear, hard to understand and in some cases misleading, while some firms have not adapted their practices at all. The review highlights that several investment firms have misread or overlooked key obligations, including firms that incorrectly consider themselves exempt. It also identifies marketing practices that can give an inaccurate impression of sustainability characteristics, such as presenting ratings as evidence that funds contribute to sustainable development when they instead relate to whether sustainability factors could negatively affect returns (sustainability risk), and using labels, logos or imagery to suggest sustainability attributes while keeping the funds outside the related disclosure obligations. The authority also points to frequent confusion in mandatory documentation between sustainability risk and adverse sustainability impacts or claims of contribution to sustainable development, limited and hard-to-follow descriptions of policies for identifying and managing sustainability risks, and insufficient explanations by managers of methodologies and assessments related to principal adverse impacts, including references to external data and sustainability analysis without explaining how they are used and should be interpreted. The report provides guidance on disclosure requirements in areas where the authority has identified a need for clarification.
Norwegian Finanstilsynet 2025-06-25
Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority reviews sustainability disclosure compliance and flags unclear and potentially misleading investor information
The Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority reviewed compliance with sustainability-related disclosure rules among investment firms and fund managers, finding widespread misunderstandings and misinterpretations. Issues include unclear disclosures, incorrect exemptions, misleading marketing practices, and confusion between sustainability risk and adverse impacts. The authority offers guidance to clarify disclosure requirements.