The following historical figures describe ethics reporting in the Americas' financial sector during 2022, as presented in EthicsGlobal's analysis.
According to that analysis, implementing an ethics reporting system was associated with three times as many recorded reports in participating financial organizations in 2022.
A structured system can open communication channels for employees, customers, and suppliers, allowing concerns to be raised and followed up under established procedures. More reports do not, by themselves, prove more or less misconduct.
Of the reports compared, 52% came from North America, 32% from South America, and 16% from Central America in the source dataset. These shares are not population-wide rates of compliance .
The 2022 analysis used EthicsGlobal reporting-system data from 27 organizations with financial-sector operations in the Americas.
Carolina Valencia, then EthicsGlobal's operations director, emphasized the value of a structured ethics system for business sustainability and differentiation. This is the article's historical attribution, not a measured outcome of the study.
Key ethics indicators in the Americas, 2022
The source reported the following indicators for its financial-sector sample:
Reporting channels:
The website was the most-used route, accounting for 41% of reports.
Other digital channels—chat, app, WhatsApp, and SMS—accounted for 34%; telephone for 13%; and email for 12%.
The article inferred that some users preferred interaction with an ethics adviser through a familiar device. This interpretation was not established independently by the percentages.
Reported case types and severity:
Human-resources matters accounted for 74.43% of cases, with workplace harassment and negative leadership frequently mentioned.
Financial-information issues accounted for 15.27%, and safety and health for 4.32% in the reported categories.
The source classified 45% of cases as medium severity, 39% as low, and 12% as serious or very serious; the stated categories do not account for every case.
Anonymity:
In this sample, 67% of reports were anonymous. The source said identifiable reports were more common in finance than in some other sectors; that comparison needs its own underlying data.
Supporting information:
The source said 78% of reports included attached or verifiable evidence, while 22% did not. Evidence can help investigators, but a report without attachments still merits a fair review.
Other 2022 indicators:
The article highlighted these additional figures for its financial-sector sample:
- Sexual-harassment reports represented 2% of cases received during 2022.
- The source classified 94% of telephone reports as supported, pointing to the possible value of structured interviews. This is not a general rate for telephone hotlines.
- Average closure time was reported as 30 days for anonymous cases and 28.5 days for cases with personal details.
Sustainable business and the ethics system: a 2023 outlook
EthicsGlobal argued that clear policies, roles, and procedures support business resilience.
The article described possible advantages of ethics systems, such as a stronger reputation, workplace climate, and internal trust; it did not establish causal effects.
Its 2023 forecast of growing interest in ethical business is historical and should not be read as a current forecast.
You have read Ethics in Latin American Finance: 2022 Reporting Data. We also recommend: Corporate Governance: The Importance of Finance and Planning
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