Journal of Economic, Finance Research and Review (JEFRR) · Research article · Open access
Does ESG Disclosure Create Value? A Critical Review of the Evidence, with Attention to Emerging and Transition Economies
Haseeb Anwar, Shahan Shah, Md Mahbub ur Rahman
20 August 2026 · Vol. 2, Issue 8, pp. 552-554
DOI: 10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09
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What is this article about?
Whether environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosure creates shareholder value is one of the most studied and least settled questions in modern corporate finance. This paper critically reviews the theoretical arguments and empirical evidence on the ESG disclosure–firm value relationship, with particular attention to emerging and transition economies, where institutional conditions differ fundamentally from the developed markets that dominate the literature.
Article at a glance
- Published
- 20 August 2026
- Volume / issue / pages
- Vol. 2, Issue 8, pp. 552-554
- ISSN
- 3051-3650 (online) · 3051-3642 (print)
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0 — free to read and reuse with attribution
- Peer review
- Double-blind, at least two independent reviewers
- Publisher
- EP Journals Group
Abstract
Whether environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosure creates shareholder value is one of the most studied and least settled questions in modern corporate finance. This paper critically reviews the theoretical arguments and empirical evidence on the ESG disclosure–firm value relationship, with particular attention to emerging and transition economies, where institutional conditions differ fundamentally from the developed markets that dominate the literature. The review organises the theoretical terrain around four mechanisms — information asymmetry reduction, stakeholder and legitimacy effects, signalling, and agency costs of overinvestment — which generate opposing predictions and therefore make the question empirical. Synthesising the empirical literature, including large-scale meta-analytic evidence, the review concludes that the association between ESG disclosure and firm value is on balance modestly positive but highly conditional: it strengthens with disclosure credibility (assurance, standardised frameworks), investor sophistication, and institutional quality, and weakens or disappears where disclosure is boilerplate or unverifiable. In emerging and transition economies, the evidence indicates that foreign institutional ownership is the primary channel through which disclosure is priced, raising distributional concerns about a two-tier disclosure landscape. The review closes with implications for phased ESG regulation and an agenda for research on disclosure quality rather than disclosure quantity.
Keywords: ESG disclosure, firm valuation, sustainability reporting, transition economies, corporate governance, literature review, signalling
Cite this article
Haseeb Anwar, Shahan Shah, & Md Mahbub ur Rahman (2026). Does ESG Disclosure Create Value? A Critical Review of the Evidence, with Attention to Emerging and Transition Economies. Journal of Economic, Finance Research and Review, 2(8), 552-554. https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09
@article{Haseeb2026,
title = {Does ESG Disclosure Create Value? A Critical Review of the Evidence, with Attention to Emerging and Transition Economies},
author = {Haseeb Anwar and Shahan Shah and Md Mahbub ur Rahman},
journal = {Journal of Economic, Finance Research and Review},
year = {2026},
volume = {2},
number = {8},
pages = {552-554},
doi = {10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09},
url = {https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09}
}Questions about this article
Who wrote this article?
Haseeb Anwar, Shahan Shah, Md Mahbub ur Rahman.
Where and when was it published?
In Journal of Economic, Finance Research and Review, Volume 2, Issue 8, pages 552-554, published by EP Journals Group on 20 August 2026.
Is this article free to read?
Yes. It is open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) licence, so anyone can read, share and reuse it with attribution.
What is the DOI of this article?
10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09 (https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09).
How do I cite this article?
APA: Haseeb Anwar, Shahan Shah, & Md Mahbub ur Rahman (2026). Does ESG Disclosure Create Value? A Critical Review of the Evidence, with Attention to Emerging and Transition Economies. Journal of Economic, Finance Research and Review, 2(8), 552-554. https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-jefrr/V2E8/2026-09
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