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• ESG regulation and what lies behind it - opportunities and challenges in preparing businesses for ESG in Hungary

  19-41

  Orsolya Szendrey

  Gábor Bányai

  Mihály Dombi

  Judit Futó

  Dávid János Gulyás

  Andrea Karcagi-Kováts

  Piroska Harazin

  Views:

  944

  On 12 December 2023, the Parliament adopted the proposal on the rules of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and other related laws to promote sustainable financing and unified corporate responsibility (ESG Act). Companies subject to the Act will gradually have to comply with several qualitative and quantitative requirements, which will pose significant challenges for market players and regulators monitoring their operations. This paper aims to review how the gradual extension of the scope of the Act will affect market and industry players, highlighting the opportunities and challenges for stakeholders in meeting regulatory requirements in environmental, corporate governance and social matters.

• Sustainability-focused investors? - Exploring the determinants of individual ESG investment intentions using structural equation modelling

  Orsolya Lili Lengyel

  Gábor Harangozo

  Views:

  217

  The aim of this study is to examine the determinants of individual ESG investment intentions. The own research model was developed by complementing Ajzen's theory of planned behaviour with literature-based approaches and adapting it to the topic. Based on the model, the relationships and the hypotheses were tested on a Hungarian sample of 228 participants using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Both the research model and the methodology used are novel in the context of this study.

  The results suggest that both general and sustainability-focused investment attitudes positively influence ESG investment intentions. Subjective norms related to ESG investment and a sense of self-efficacy also support ESG investment intention. Moreover, it can be said that women's ESG investment attitudes and intentions are higher than in case of men. The results can contribute to the better understanding of the factors underlying individual ESG investment intentions, especially in the domestic context.

  JEL codes: D12, Q56, Q58.

• Impact of the sustainability report on Hungarian stock prices

  94-107

  Gergő Tömöri

  Vilmos Lakatos

  Views:

  184

  ESG reporting has become increasingly significant for evaluating corporate sustainability. Our study examined firms that had been publicly listed for several years by 2023, and which had already engaged in ESG reporting voluntarily, showing an early, consistent commitment to sustainability despite the absence of regulatory requirements. We hypothesised that this group’s market valuation metrics would reflect a more favourable and realistic investor assessment compared to a control group. However, our findings revealed that while statistically significant differences appeared primarily in the Price-to-Book Value (P/BV) ratios, overall, the investor assessments did not yet demonstrate a statistically significant divergence on average. This may suggest that ESG reports serve more as marketing tools than as indicators of genuine sustainable resource management, which some investors recognise from other mandatory financial disclosures. These insights can support further research on the Hungarian investment climate and aid in refining EU sustainability directives within Hungary’s regulatory framework.

  JEL classification code: Q56, G11