Disclosure de práticas de sustentabilidade e o custo de financiamento das organizações financeiras cooperativas

Abstract

This study aimed to analyze the level of disclosure of sustainability practices information from the stakeholders' perspective and its relationship with the funding cost of cooperative financial organizations. The central hypothesis is that the level of disclosure of such information legitimizes the management of cooperatives, leading to a reduction in their funding costs. Methodologically, the sustainability indicators developed by Macagnan and Seibert (2021) were adapted to the context of cooperative financial organizations and validated with members of these organizations and specialists. The results indicated that the level of disclosure of sustainability practices (IS) has a negative relationship with the funding cost (CF). Furthermore, the minimum point was calculated at which the level of sustainability disclosure (IS) minimizes the funding cost (CF), identified as 0.7873133. It is concluded that managers disclose sustainability information to legitimize themselves to stakeholders, ensuring the maintenance of the social contract. By doing so, they reinforce their commitment to cooperative principles, distinguishing cooperative financial organizations from traditional banks.