Do different owners matter for environmental and social information disclosure? Evidence from Vietnamese listed companies

Purpose This study aims to investigate how ownership structure, both as a composite governance construct and through its individual ownership dimensions, is associated with environmental and social information disclosure (DESI) among Vietnamese listed companies. Design/methodology/approach The study uses panel data from 601 nonfinancial companies listed on the Vietnamese stock market during 2021–2025, representing 3,005 firm-year observations. The study examines the aggregate relationship between ownership structure and DESI using a PCA-derived ownership index, as well as the relationships between five individual ownership dimensions and DESI. FGLS is used as the main estimation method to account for heteroskedasticity and autocorrelation in the panel data, while a fixed-effects model with cluster-robust standard errors is used as an alternative specification to assess the robustness of the main findings. Findings The results show that ownership structure is positively associated with DESI. Among the ownership dimensions, foreign ownership, institutional ownership, state ownership, managerial ownership and ownership concentration all show positive and statistically significant associations with DESI in their respective specifications. These findings suggest that ownership structure functions as a multidimensional governance mechanism for enhancing DESI in Vietnam’s evolving institutional environment, extending stakeholder and legitimacy theories. Given the institutional similarities between Vietnam and many emerging economies, the findings also offer broader implications beyond the Vietnamese context. Research limitations/implications This study focuses on non-financial listed companies in Vietnam during the 2021–2025 period. Future studies may extend the analysis to other industries, countries or governance mechanisms and investigate moderating or mediating factors affecting the relationship between ownership structure and DESI. Future studies should address potential endogeneity and reverse causality using stronger causal identification strategies. Practical implications The findings suggest that companies should strengthen ownership governance by fostering effective monitoring from diverse ownership groups, while policymakers should enhance ownership transparency and sustainability disclosure regulations. Social implications Improved DESI may contribute to greater corporate accountability, enhance stakeholder confidence, support environmental protection and social responsibility and promote sustainable economic development in emerging markets such as Vietnam. Originality/value Unlike previous studies that focused on individual ownership dimensions, this study integrates ownership into a PCA-based composite index while simultaneously examining both the composite and individual ownership effects, providing new evidence from Vietnam that is relevant to emerging markets.