History of sustainable finance regulation: the European Odyssey

Abstract

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the concept of sustainable finance in the European framework to contribute to the clarification of the term, to promote the understanding of the evolution of the phenomenon by presenting the main milestones in chronological sense and to present a matrix of regulatory interrelation to locate patterns of convergence, regulatory gaps and show feedback between actors. Although the origins of the concept date back to the 1960s, the term has become topical with the emergence of environmental, social and governance (ESG) responsibilities in the business world.