BBCs disclosure through social reporting: evidence from a survey

Several scholars and entrepreneurs have been showing a growing interest in voluntary disclosure for many years. In this context, this paper aims to contribute to improving the knowledge on this topic; in particular, the paper is focused on the Social Report of a specific type of banking intermediaries: Banche di Credito Cooperativo (BCCs). They are currently regarded, in fact, as the financial entities with the highest level of orientation towards stakeholders and, therefore, traditionally defined as the ethical banks for excellence. Based on a direct survey on the Italian banking system, our findings show that only a small number of BCCs actually adopt a Social Report coherent with the official standards. Moreover, even fewer are those able to apply all the established guidelines. Although this situation is quite weak at the present time, it seems likely to change within a few years; especially if the proposition of new instruments and the moral suasion from academia, business sphere and political-institutional system will continue in this direction.