Prof. Dr. David Bendig, together with Dr. Denise Fischer-Kreer, Dr. Mario Vaupel and Prof. Dr. Malte Brettel from RWTH Aachen University, published the article "The Role of Share Repurchases for Firms' Social and Environmental Sustainability" in the Journal of Business Ethics. The article is freely available here. 

The study examines the importance of share repurchases for the environmental and social sustainability of companies. The researchers:found that significantly fewer share buybacks were made for companies outside the financial sector if they had previously committed to being environmentally responsible. In addition, firms that push to buy back their own shares have weaker downstream social and environmental performance, as free cash flow is used to buy back shares rather than reinvest in sustainable growth.

Thus, the researchers conclude that management incentives that promote a balance in the use of financial resources between shareholder returns and social and environmental impact are needed to enable the transition to sustainable business models.