In recent years, the phenomenon of ‘greenwashing’ of corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) reports has been on the rise, seriously interfering with normal capital investment behaviour. This paper explores the relationship between investor concerns and the ‘greenwashing’ of corporate ESG reports, using Chinese A-share listed companies from 2014 to 2021 as a sample. The results show that green finance policies significantly contribute to the ‘greenwashing’ of ESG reports of heavily polluting companies. Under the pressure of green finance policies, heavily polluting companies have more incentives to ‘greenwash’ their ESG reports to relieve financing pressure. This paper’s findings suggest that green finance policies that promote enterprises’ green transformation may negatively induce enterprises to make false ESG disclosures.