The signs of the new ESG era are unmistakable: Asset managers are recommending to business leaders a bigger focus and transparency on environmental and social aspects and C-suites are being expanded to include the Chief Sustainability Officer. Sustainable business is occupying the current debates like no other topic. But this is also part of the flared-up focus on sustainability: authorities perform searches in undertakings due to greenwashing allegations and competitors are in litigation due to allegedly false statements on sustainability efforts.

ESG has an ambiguous meaning for undertakings: On the one hand it describes the opportunity to operate sustainably and to report truthfully on this due to increasing public and regulatory pressure. On the other hand, there are risks that can be existential, for example in the case of ESG fraud. A flood of new requirements increases the risk of fraud – and only those who know the threats can protect themselves.

In a recent article, published at Compliance Business, Christian Gräser, Christopher Trippe and Christoph Hornbach describe internationally relevant ESG frameworks, examples of ESG fraud and what countermeasures undertakings can take to protect themselves from fraud.