Travers Smith's Alternative Insights: The Commission's SFDR proposal fails to deliver clarity

It has taken several years for the European Commission to produce its formal proposal for reform of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR).  After a major consultation in 2023, a call for evidence in May 2025, significant stakeholder input, and a leaked draft of a near-final proposal, the text finally landed on 20 November.  It is disappointing.  (Our detailed analysis is here.)

The original SFDR, finalised in 2019, was a disclosure regime, intended to bring transparency to sustainability claims.  The EU was a first mover in applying ESG regulation to funds, and the SFDR played a significant role in changing the global conversation.