ESG players

The regulators, standard setters, raters and roles that shape ESG in India and abroad.

All ESG foundations Environment & climate Social Corporate governance Reporting & disclosure ESG ratings & data Sustainable finance Responsible investing & valuation ESG players India ESG rulebook

Indian regulators and government

ESG players

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)

India's securities market regulator and the main source of ESG disclosure rules for listed companies.

ESG players

Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

India's central bank and banking regulator, setting climate and green finance rules for banks and NBFCs.

ESG players

Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA)

The ministry that administers the Companies Act, 2013, including CSR and board rules.

ESG players

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI)

India's insurance regulator, which also sets stewardship rules for insurers as investors.

ESG players

Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA)

The regulator for India's National Pension System and its pension fund managers.

ESG players

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC)

The ministry responsible for environmental law, clearances, waste rules and India's climate negotiations.

ESG players

Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)

The statutory body under the Ministry of Power that runs India's energy efficiency schemes and administers the carbon credit trading scheme.

ESG players

Ministry of Power

The central ministry for electricity policy, energy conservation law and the carbon market's legal basis.

ESG players

Grid Controller of India (Grid-India)

The operator of India's national and regional power grids, and the registry for the carbon credit trading scheme.

ESG players

National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA)

The independent regulator of auditors of listed and large companies.

ESG players

Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and its Sustainability Reporting Standards Board

The statutory body for chartered accountants, which also sets India's sustainability assurance standards.

ESG players

Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI)

The statutory body for company secretaries, who run board processes and compliance at Indian companies.

ESG players

Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA)

The MCA's institute that runs the databank and proficiency test for independent directors.

ESG players

National Stock Exchange of India (NSE)

India's largest stock exchange, which enforces listing rules and runs ESG indices and a Social Stock Exchange segment.

ESG players

BSE

Asia's oldest stock exchange, which runs a Social Stock Exchange segment and owns the BSE index business.

ESG players

NITI Aayog

The Government of India's policy think tank, which tracks the Sustainable Development Goals and advises on the energy transition.

Global standard setters

ESG players

IFRS Foundation and the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)

The body that sets the global baseline for investor-focused sustainability disclosure through IFRS S1 and IFRS S2.

ESG players

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)

The most widely used standards for reporting a company's impacts on the economy, environment and people.

ESG players

CDP

The global non-profit that runs the main voluntary disclosure system for climate, water and forests, and scores the responses.

ESG players

Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)

The initiative that published the main framework for disclosing nature-related risks and impacts.

ESG players

GHG Protocol (World Resources Institute and WBCSD)

The partnership that writes the standards almost every company uses to measure greenhouse gas emissions.

ESG players

Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)

The organisation that checks whether company emission targets are consistent with climate science.

ESG players

EFRAG

The European advisory body that develops the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).

ESG players

International Capital Market Association (ICMA)

The industry body that supports the global principles for green, social, sustainability, sustainability-linked and transition bonds.

ESG players

Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI)

The non-profit that certifies climate-aligned bonds and tracks the global labelled debt market.

International bodies

ESG players

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

The UN treaty and secretariat under which countries negotiate climate action, including the Paris Agreement.

ESG players

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

The UN body that assesses climate science and produces the reports governments use to set climate goals.

ESG players

Financial Stability Board (FSB)

The international body that monitors risks to the global financial system and created the TCFD.

ESG players

International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)

The global association of securities regulators, of which SEBI is a member.

ESG players

Basel Committee on Banking Supervision

The global standard setter for bank regulation, which now also covers climate-related financial risk.

ESG players

Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS)

The network of central banks and supervisors that publishes the climate scenarios most widely used in financial stress tests.

ESG players

UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI)

A partnership between the UN Environment Programme and financial institutions on sustainable finance.

ESG players

UN Global Compact

The UN's voluntary initiative for companies, built on ten principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.

ESG players

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

The international organisation behind the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and due diligence guidance.

Investor coalitions

ESG players

Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI)

The largest global network of responsible investors, with more than 5,000 signatories.

ESG players

Climate Action 100+

The investor initiative that engages the world's largest corporate emitters on climate action.

ESG players

Net Zero Asset Managers (NZAM)

An initiative of asset managers on climate, relaunched in February 2026 with a looser commitment.

ESG players

Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ)

A coalition of financial institutions set up in 2021 to speed the transition to net zero, restructured at the start of 2025.

Market participants

ESG players

ESG rating providers

Firms that rate or score companies on ESG performance, regulated in India by SEBI since 2023.

ESG players

Proxy advisors (IiAS, InGovern, SES)

Firms that analyse shareholder resolutions and recommend how institutional investors should vote.

ESG players

Sustainability assurance providers

Audit firms and certification bodies that independently check sustainability data such as BRSR Core.

ESG players

Second-party opinion providers and independent reviewers

Firms that review green, social and sustainability-linked bond frameworks before and after issue.

ESG players

Index providers

Firms that design the indices that passive funds track, including ESG and climate indices.

Roles inside a company

ESG players