From reporting to experience: the new era of investor websites

How to manage the investor sections of company websites in 2026? Like simple storage locations designed to meet regulatory requirements? Or as real strategic tools?

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The Finance site, between equity story and compliance

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In the age of LLMs, it's hard to ignore the fact that many investor searches no longer go directly through the site, but through AIs that collect information there. But before talking about Finance sites in the past tense, let's remember that they are still digital objects with a specific objective; and an end user at the end of the day. They should therefore be treated as products in their own right, with a strategy, resources and trajectory that go beyond the sole prism of financial and legal departments.

Especially since LLMs do not invent information: they look for it where they think it is the most relevant source... sometimes wrongly. All the more reason to rethink its Finance section, so that both the visitor and the generative AIs can find their way around, and the company's proprietary data remains the reference, even if the strategy of ChatGPT, Perplexity and others is evolving rapidly.

This reflection inspired our desire to better understand how SBF120 issuers have invested in the subject of their section dedicated to investors. We saw how easily key information - from strategic plans to ESG KPIs, financial calendars and consensus - is provided to visitors. More specifically, we measured what percentage of twenty key pieces of information could be found in two clicks or less from Landing pages Finance sections.

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An experience that is still heterogeneous within the SBF120

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Unsurprisingly, like other financial communication channels, issuers are increasingly prioritizing the creation of specific formats devoted to the equity story and the strategic plan. (64%), or to the key figures related to their business model (58%). In a polarized environment subject to strong short-term pressures, the embodiment of strategic discourse remains the best way to bring together internal and external stakeholders in a sustainable manner. And if issuers are more attentive to the format of the information, we still find a significant volume of visuals that can impact readability, and their rise in search engines.

On the finance side, some best practices are beginning to develop, such as the prioritization of financial documents in tables by category and publication sequence. (38%). On the other hand, options for subscribing to financial newsletters or easy access to stock market consensus remain rare. As for ESG, if 66% of issuers refer from their Finance section to the group's commitments, dedicated content remains under-represented.

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Financialization versus pedagogy

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In innovative or complex sectors, pedagogy remains essential to materialize the financial discourse. If the presentations Corporate or the supports and replays of Capital Market Days often find their place at the entrance to Finance sections, the global discourse is nevertheless very focused on the financial sector. Some issuers stand out by integrating sectoral content, or by offering exclusive formats to their shareholders. But this educational approach, which is essential to the relationship with individual shareholders, is still progressing slowly, especially since 33% of the sites analyzed do not clearly offer spaces dedicated to them.

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Aligning compliance, strategic coherence and digital innovation

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The aim is not to identify good or bad students. Each company, according to its sector and its strategy, should assess the relevance of the elements to be valued. But it is clear that clear, prioritized content that is accessible in one to two clicks from the home page maximizes the impact of the site. It informs, limits frustration and allows the Finance section to fully fulfill its mission: to be a vector for the transmission of financial and strategic information, in order to engage stakeholders in the long term.

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