Increase in the number of ZSE issuers receiving positive audit opinions
As many as 95% of issuers received an unmodified auditor’s opinion on their 2025 annual reports, while in the second year of sustainability reporting only one issuer received a qualified opinion
The Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (Hanfa) has conducted an analysis of audited auditors’ reports of issuers whose securities are listed on the regulated market of the Zagreb Stock Exchange and, for the second consecutive year, of their sustainability reports. Both analyses covered the 2025 reporting year. The analysis of auditors’ reports shows a positive trend, with the proportion of issuers receiving an unmodified auditor’s opinion increasing to 95% from 91% in the previous year. The analysis covered 73 reports and examined the type of audit opinion issued, key audit matters, and auditors’ emphasis of matter paragraphs.
All companies listed on the Prime Market (6 issuers) and the Official Market (24 issuers) received unmodified auditor’s opinions. On the Regular Market, 39 issuers received unmodified opinions, while four of them received modified opinions.
All six issuers listed on the Prime Market of the Zagreb Stock Exchange received unmodified auditor’s opinions, reflecting the segment’s highest listing standards. All 24 issuers listed on the Official Market received positive, unmodified auditor’s opinions as well. 39 issuers on the Regular Market received unmodified opinions, four received modified opinions, while three issuers did not publish their audited reports.
Hanfa encourages all current and prospective investors to regularly monitor issuers’ regulated disclosures, including audited annual financial statements and sustainability reports. The purpose of issuer disclosures is to ensure the simultaneous public availability of all relevant information, enabling investors to make informed investment decisions.
The sustainability reports submitted and the accompanying assurance reports issued by audit firms for 2025 were analysed in accordance with the Accounting Act, the Audit Act, the Capital Market Act, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), and Article 8 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852 (the Taxonomy Regulation). The analysis was based on annual reports submitted by 30 April 2026 and has been conducted for the second consecutive year.
Taking into account the applicable regulatory exemption, the total number of entities subject to sustainability reporting requirements decreased to 32, of which 11 issuers are supervised by Hanfa.
In conclusion, 35 issuers subject to Hanfa’s supervision prepared sustainability reports for 2025 (11 on a mandatory basis and 24 voluntarily), and all of them also submitted an assurance report on their sustainability reporting. This represents an increase of eight percentage points compared with 2024.
34 issuers (97%) received limited assurance conclusions without qualifications, while only one issuer received a qualified conclusion, an improvement compared with 2024, when five qualified conclusions were issued.
All the unqualified conclusions confirm that auditors identified no material non-compliance. Auditors also emphasise that they do not assess the sustainability of a company’s business model, are not responsible for the content of the report itself, and that the engagement does not cover comparative information and contains inherent limitations. The auditor’s process plays an important role in identifying areas for improvement and promoting more transparent sustainability reporting. All 2025 reports were prepared on a consolidated basis.
The full analysis, including an overview of auditors’ opinions, is available in Croatian here, while the analysis of sustainability report assurance engagements is available in Croatian here.
