Investigating the extent of sustainability reporting in the banking industry
Abstract
This study investigated the extent to which banks in South Africa report on remuneration and
incentives according to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines. This was based on
the GRI-G4 guidelines. The study was done by examining the annual integrated reports of
2014 of eight commercial banks listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Opportunities
exist to improve the quality of Sustainability Reporting as certain standards are not complied
to. Other related issues that were highlighted and put into perspective include Integrated
Reporting, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and the banking sector and remuneration.
Content analysis was used as the research method in this empirical study. The results are
revealed on a disclosure index compiled from the GRI-G4 standards. The paper concludes
with recommendations based on the content from the GRI-G4 guidelines and aspects that
needs further attention due to disclosures not having been adequately presented.