Home / Publications / Giving a deal the green light

Giving a deal the green light

Addressing ESG in the M&A process | 5 min read

ESG policies are no longer just a result of compliance with regulatory requirements, and are increasingly implemented on the basis of a company’s global citizenship and in response to customer expectations. Not being transparent about a company’s ESG record, or in extreme cases greenwashing, increases the risk of scrutiny by authorities and by the public (potentially including activist organisations), and can negatively impact a company’s value. It comes as no surprise that the CMS M&A Study shows that ESG considerations are beginning to appear specifically as part of the due diligence process and in transaction documents – 33% of European M&A deals involved specific ESG due diligence and 45% of SPAs signed included specific ESG provisions. The CMS M&A Study also shows, however, that ESG was a factor that influenced the choice of target in only 3% of transactions.

Key contacts