More than 75% of US CFOs want to maintain investment in sustainability

The recent election of Donald Trump as President of the United States continues to cause waves of disruption with international reach, starting with corporate sustainability objectives. After several multinationals, such as Disney and Google, announced a retreat in their social policies, a new survey by consultancy BDO shows that the vast majority of companies intend to maintain or increase their ESG investment.

The numbers are clear. 77% of US chief financial officers (CFOs) say they will maintain or increase their commitment to sustainability. In fact, according to a survey of 500 CFOs in that country, 44% of respondents say they want to increase the allocation of resources in this area – double the number of respondents who intend to reduce it.

For this research, BDO – which also has a presence in Portugal – surveyed companies with annual revenues of between US$250 million and US$3 billion from sectors such as healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, retail and technology. According to the data now released, risks associated with ESG criteria rank third among executives' main concerns for 2025.

However, there are changes in the way organizations look at sustainability and, above all, in the type of strategy they adopt. The "2025 CFO Sustainability Outlook Survey" study indicates that only 22% of respondents intend to focus their actions on reducing their carbon footprint, while 26% say they are focusing on climate mitigation and another 26% on issues of diversity, inclusion and equity.

Sustainability with return

Despite the difficulties and costs inherent in the transition to a sustainable economy, the companies surveyed appear to be confident that this is a winning bet. BDO reveals that 91% of organizations that are integrating sustainability into their strategy expect an increase in revenues over the course of this year, and 69% even expect an increase in profits.

And there are good reasons for this. The CFOs surveyed reveal that the benefits of investing in ESG have brought more innovation and business opportunities (37%), more revenue (36%), new investment opportunities and access to better financing conditions (34%), cost reduction (30%) and greater customer loyalty (30%) .

"The 2024 US presidential election is in the past. Despite expectations that the new administration will reverse many of Biden's policies, most companies plan to stay the course or increase investments in sustainability initiatives," the study reads.

BDO also indicates that most organizations surveyed are at an early stage of their sustainability journey, with 21% of CFOs integrating ESG measures into their strategy. 40% of executives are focused on meeting shareholder expectations, while 40% are focused on regulatory issues.

“A sustainable company is stronger, more responsive to stakeholder expectations and more resilient to economic headwinds,” explains Karen Baum . BDO’s Sustainability and ESG Center of Excellence Head says that “when companies move sustainability out of the way and integrate it into their core business strategy,” they can unlock “innovative growth paths while defending against changing market conditions.”