Some banks operating in Belgium continue to invest in companies involved in the production, maintenance or modernisation of nuclear weapons, a Belgian umbrella for peace and democracy announced on Monday.
These banks include BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, ING and Santander, the Coordination nationale d'action pour la paix et la démocratie (CNAPD ) said, pointing to a new survey.
The survey was commissioned by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and the Dutch organisation PAX.
It was conducted among 24 major nuclear weapons producers that contribute to the arsenals of China, France, India, Russia, the UK and the US.
Some 306 banks invested $746 billion in nuclear arms
It shows that between January 2020 and July 2022, these companies benefitted from $746 billion invested by 306 financial institutions, an increase of $61.5 billion compared to the previous period analysed.
According to the CNAPD, this means that “the savings of Belgians end up in the hands of arms producers who flout international law.”
The CNAPD noted, by way of illustration, that BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank and ING invested €12.7 billion, €11.45 billion and €545 million respectively in weapons of mass destruction.
Good examples: KBC, VDK, Triodos
However, there are “good examples” in Belgium, notes the umbrella, citing the KBC in particular.
“The Belgian bank has revised its investment policy by categorising nuclear weapons as controversial and by blacklisting companies specialising in atomic weapons,” the CNAPD reported.
“Other banks, such as VDK or Triodos, have always prohibited investments in companies linked to nuclear weapons,” it added.
