THE DEVELOPMENT OF ESG PERFORMANCE LITERATURE IN THE BANKING SECTOR
Abstract
This study provides a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the development of ESG performance literature in the banking sector between 2010 and 2025. Using data retrieved from the Scopus database, 692 peer-reviewed articles were examined through Bibliometrix (R/Biblioshiny), while VOSviewer visualization tool were employed to map collaboration, co-occurrence and citation networks. The findings reveal a sharp increase in academic interest in ESG-related banking research, particularly after 2019, with nearly 90% of all publications produced between 2022 and 2025. Italy, China and India emerged as the leading contributors, supported by strong research activity in Europe and Asia. Institutional analysis shows that universities in Italy and Eastern Europe play a central role, while several Asian institutions are increasingly influential. Sustainability (Switzerland) and Finance Research Letters are identified as the most active journals in the field. Co-word and collaboration networks indicate that research mainly focuses on ESG, banking, financial performance, sustainable development, governance and risk management.
Keywords
References
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