The Link between Corporate Social Responsibility and Financial Performance in the Hungarian Banking Sector in the Years Following the Global Crisis
The hectic economic changes in the past decade and the subsequent regulatory tightening have had a substantial negative impact on the operation of banking service providers. These providers have sought to arrest the decline in their profitability, to re-establish trust with their customers and to reinforce their competitive position with tools that presented banks as institutions which promote corporate social responsibility on the financial and capital markets, involving concepts such as responsible banking, green banking and ethical banking. However, the true extent of this rapid response focusing on corporate social responsibility and its effect on banks long-term performance are difficult to measure. This study explores the assessment and measurement methodologies pertaining to the financial sector, and examines a sample of seven dominant market participants in the Hungarian banking sector to determine the relationship between banks corporate social responsibility, its integration into operating activities and banks financial performance in 20062013.