What Is the♈ Sustainability Accounting Standards🧸 Board (SASB)?

Founded in 2011, the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) is a nonprofit organization that helps businesses report sustainability information to their investors using industry-specific standards. SASB Standards support 77 industries and help identify the risks and opportunities that may affect a company's cash flows, access to finance, and cost of capital.

In August 2022, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) of the International Financial✤ Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation assumed responsibility for the SASB Standards. 

SASB Standards

SASB Standards specify the 澳洲幸运5开奖号🍒码历史查询:environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues most likely to impact companies. SASB reporting provides a broader illustration than traditional 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:financial reporting.

SASB Standards try to marry metrics already used by more than 200 entities, such as the World Health Organization, the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Environmental Protection Agency, and industry organizations like the Electric Power Research Institute. This alignment helps companies avoid redundant costs, and combine SASB Standards with global corporate transparency efforts. 

Global investors recognize SASB Standards as essential for companies to make consistent sustainability disclosures. Reporting frameworks that include more than just a financial picture are relevant to those investors interested in understanding a company’s overall effect on 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:sustainable development.

"Sustainability Dimensions"

The SASB Standards focus on sustainability factors that affect financial or operating performance of companies in a particular industry. The standards help companies identify risks and opportunities using five “sustainability dimensions”: the environment, human capital, social capital, business model and innovation, and leadership and governance. These topics outline what a corporation should disclose.

Using SASB Standards

Companies that seek to improve🦩 theܫir reporting of sustainability issues may consider how SASB Standards fit into their broader reporting regime, potentially supplementing and reinforcing other types of disclosures.

Implementing SASB Standards begins with in-depth analysis of the industry-specific tools and determining the best channel to disclose sustainability information through annual reports to shareholders, investor presentations, or the company website.

Once a company has a grasp of the relevant SASB Standards, it can perform a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:gap analysis to determine which sustainability metrics it is already reporting and identify areas for improvement. Then, the organization can develop its specific disclosures and establish a system for monitoring and adapting its sustainability reporting in response to shifting conditions and evolving investor needs.

What SASB Standards Mean for Investors

To make informed decisions, investors need access to quality information about the ESG issues that could affect a company’s performance and value. SASB Standards play the critical role of making this information consistent and transparent to facilitate comparisons across geographies and 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:asset classes.

Investors benefit from SASB data because of the focus on financially material sustainability issues, providing a view that extends beyond what can be discerned from financial statements. This allows investors to consider sustainability risks in addition to more traditional 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:measures of risk. SASB Standards also help investors determine and manage sector-specific risks and pinpoint key sustainability issues.

The Bottom Line

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) created a framework for companies to disclose environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues that could affect their financial performance and their ability to create enterprise value over the long term. The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation has integrated SASB Standards into its reporting ecosystem and provides the markets and investors with pertinent sustainability information.