Nykredit is a large Danish financial services provider focusing on commercial and mortgage banking. It is also active in insurance, leasing, pension and estate agency business. The Nykredit Group has over 1 million customers and holds almost USD26 billion (€21 billion) in assets under management.[1]
Nykredit’s responsible investment policy states that companies involved in the production of controversial weapons are excluded. This includes producers of cluster munitions, landmines and nuclear weapons produced in breach of the Non Proliferation Treaty.[2] This means nuclear weapon producers in the five identified nuclear armed countries under the NPT are not excluded.
The exclusion policy applies to all corporate banking activities. It also applies to all types of assets managed internally and externally.[3]
Nykredit makes use of a publicly available exclusion list, which is based on research by MSCI ESG Research and GES.[4] As of December 2017, only Walchandnagar Industries (India) is excluded because of producing nuclear weapons in violation with the Non-Proliferation Treaty.[5]
Nykredit was also found to have several below-the-threshold investments in nuclear weapon producers identified by this report.
We commend Nykredit for adopting a public policy on nuclear weapons. We recommend Nykredit strengthen its policy to include all nuclear weapons producing companies, regardless of location. We look forward to engaging with Nykredit, so a strong and comprehensively applied policy may be listed in the Hall of Fame in a future update of this report.
[1] Nykredit, “About us”, website Nykredit (https://www.nykredit.com/en-gb/om-os/), viewed 16 January 2018; Nykredit, “Responsibility”, website Nykredit (https://www.nykredit.com/en-gb/samfundsansvar/), viewed 16 January 2018.
[2] Nykredit, “Socially Responsible Investment”, website Nukredit (https://www.nykredit.com/en-gb/samfundsansvar/investments/), viewed 16 January 2018; Nykredit, written response to PAX, 2 January 2018.
[3] Nykredit, “Sustainable value propositions”, Nykredit website (https://www.nykredit.com/en-gb/samfundsansvar/investments/politik-for-baredygtige-investeringer/), viewed 16 January 2018; Nykredit, written response to PAX, 2 January 2018.
[4] Nykredit, written response to PAX, 26 January 2018; Nykredit, “Sustainable value propositions”, Nykredit website (https://www.nykredit.com/en-gb/samfundsansvar/investments/politik-for-baredygtige-investeringer/), viewed 1 February 2018.
[5] Nykredit, “Excluded companies”, Nykredit website (https://www.nykredit.com/en-gb/samfundsansvar/investments/ekskluderede-selskaber/), viewed 16 January 2018.
Last updated March 2018