Don't Bank on the Bomb

Don’t Bank on the Bomb is a joint project of PAX and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) that provides regular updates on the companies building nuclear weapons and their financiers. It examines the contracts awarded to companies involved in the production of key components of nuclear weapons and lists the banks, pension funds, and other financial institutions that seek to profit from these producing companies. The Don’t Bank on the Bomb research also profiles the financial sector actors that either restrict or fully exclude any financial engagement with nuclear weapons producers. PAX also directly engages with the financial sector to further increase the stigma attached to these inhumane weapons.

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Why

The need for nuclear disarmament has never been so urgent. Yet, nuclear-armed states continue to pour astronomical sums of money into the maintenance and modernisation of their nuclear arsenals.

Many governments contract the private sector to produce key components for nuclear weapons. These companies in turn rely on external financing to carry out their activities. As such, the banks, pension funds, asset managers, and other financial institutions that continue to invest in or grant credit to these companies allow for the production of inhumane and indiscriminate weapons to proceed.

However, this also means financial sector actors can be instrumental in achieving positive change. In choosing where to put their money, financial institutions can significantly influence a company’s strategic direction. Through direct engagement and research, the Don’t Bank on the Bomb project leverages the role of the financial sector with the ultimate aim of pressuring companies to move away from the nuclear weapons industry.

Leveraging the financial sector

Our research

In our annual publications, we profile the companies most involved in the production of nuclear weapons and lists the financial institutions worldwide that continue to financially back these nuclear weapons manufacturers: our so-called “Hall of Shame”. The Don’t Bank on the Bomb research also analyses the policies of financial institutions that seek to avoid exposure to companies involved in building nuclear weapons. The policies that comprehensively exclude any financial engagement with nuclear weapons producers are listed in our “Hall of Fame”.

The Don’t Bank on the Bomb project has a successful track record: over time, many financial institutions have changed their investment policies for the better. In 2018, the largest Dutch pension fund, ABP, announced it would end its investments in nuclear weapons producers, citing the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) as decisive in its decision.

By promoting sustainable and ethical investment practices, financial institutions can play a key role in supporting global efforts towards a world free of nuclear weapons.

Don’t Bank on the Bomb

The report shows that between January 2022 and August 2024, 260 financial institutions had significant financing or investment relations with nuclear weapon producers.

Download the report