“You’d rather invest in the nucleus of your city than in nuclear weapons? We do too.” Recently, the Belgian vdk bank started advertising its sustainable investment in social and local initiatives and strong anti-nuclear weapons stance. DBOTB commends vdk Bank (Belgium) for adopting a public policy on nuclear weapons. Now, vdk is going above and beyond to prove that it is a strong contender for the top of financial institutions saying no to nuclear weapons.
vdk Bank is not the only one in this race. In the Belgian banking sphere, KBC and Triodos Bank are also have good examples and explicitly refer to the Nuclear Ban Treaty (TPNW) in their investment policies. And it makes sense for these institutions to do so.
Belgian stances: the government and the people
Pressured by NATO, despite overwhelming public opinion, Belgium hosts nuclear weapons at the Kleine Brogel airbase. Belgium hasn’t yet joined the TPNW, but in December 2020, stating that the treaty “could give new impetus to multilateral nuclear disarmament” the government recognised the potential of this new legal instrument.
The latest public opinion poll conducted by YouGov (November, 2020) among the Belgian populace showed that 77% of Belgians want their government to join the Ban Treaty.
So financial institutions like vdk, Triodos and KBC are meeting the wishes of the public, and lending a helping a hand in creating more tools and further impetus to nuclear disarmament by divesting from nuclear weapons.
What does a bank like vdk gain from taking a stand against nuclear weapons?
In general, having a sound reputation due to good practice is sure to attract clients and help a company to grow. A good company reputation opens the door to opportunity and provides unhindered access to your client base. Investing in nuclear weapons is one way to generate bad publicity especially this year with the pandemic and shrinking financial flexibility all around, vdk bank has managed to secure 10.8% growth in its gross operating results and a rise in its investment funds of almost 30%.
Companies that don’t bank on nuclear weapons and use their anti-nuclear weapons stance as a selling point can show their stand for more secure and long-term investments that look towards the future. Financial institutions can leverage their impact on the direction companies choose to take. They have the power to directly influence and engage with producers of nuclear weapons. The Ban Treaty prohibits any state, individual, company, or international organization, as well as any non-state actor that assists with or encourages the production of nuclear weapons . By refraining from the act of supporting nuclear weapons production, banks like vdk make sure they won’t be complicit in the illegal encouragement of governments to purchase unnecessary and destructive nuclear weapons. And it is a basic role of the private sector to be compliant with the laws of the jurisdictions in which they operate.
Lastly, those financial institutions that have made clear policies and implemented them in such a way that they do not hold investments in companies involved in the production of key components for nuclear weapons, will be listed in the DBOTB’s Hall of Fame, the only global report on the private financing of the nuclear weapons industry.