From Toxic to Transparent: The Effect of Greenpeace’s Detox Campaign on Market Volatility

Antonios Sarantidis (), Vasileios Bougioukos, Fotios Mitropoulos and Konstantinos Kollias
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Antonios Sarantidis: Department of Management Science and Technology, University of the Peloponnese, 22100 Tripoli, Greece
Vasileios Bougioukos: Department of Economics, Richmond American University London, London W4 5AN, UK
Fotios Mitropoulos: Department of Economics, Democritus University of Thrace, University Campus, 69100 Komotini, Greece
Konstantinos Kollias: Department of Economics, Democritus University of Thrace, University Campus, 69100 Komotini, Greece

JRFM, 2025, vol. 18, issue 10, 1-17

Abstract: In the contemporary structure of political economy, one of the leading actors is Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). Some of these organisations, to promote their goals, often engage in public disputes with enterprises that have publicly traded shares on the stock market. Consequently, they serve as channels for negative information relevant to these enterprises that falls within their discourse. In this paper, we examine the impact on the share price volatility of these enterprises due to the public debate initiated by an NGO aiming to change the enterprise’s behaviour on a particular matter (e.g., using more eco-friendly materials). Data from Greenpeace’s Detox Campaign are used to examine its influence on several enterprises. Using GARCH, OLS, and Difference-in-Differences models, we find that volatility increased significantly during the campaign for firms like Burberry (13.71%), Adidas (5.40%), and VFC Group (3.96%). After companies complied, volatility declined, notably in Burberry (−16.84%), Marks & Spencer (−3.24%), and VFC Group (−4.88%). These results highlight how NGO activism can heighten investor uncertainty in the short term but stabilise markets once companies respond, offering key insights for policymakers on the financial impact of civil Society’s engagement.

Keywords: NGOs; conflict; financial markets (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C E F2 F3 G (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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