Report 25 Jun 2026

Expert View: CFO/Finance & ESG: from CapEx Thinking to Risk-Adjusted TotEx Steering

The finance function is becoming central to sustainability execution. As ESG moves from reporting to operational management, CFOs are increasingly expected to translate sustainability data into investment logic, risk models, planning processes, and enterprise performance management. Many ESG-related decisions are still evaluated through short-term CapEx, ROI, and cash-flow logic. However, sustainable transformation requires a broader perspective: lifecycle cost, regulatory exposure, carbon pricing, energy volatility, supply chain risk, asset resilience, and long-term enterprise value. This Expert View explores why the CFO perspective is becoming critical as ESG becomes a finance and enterprise steering topic. The key transition is from traditional cost control to risk-adjusted TotEx steering — and from sustainability as a reporting obligation to sustainability as part of financial decision-making.