Banks change course on weapons finance as defence spending rises

SEB AB, one of Sweden’s biggest banks, said this week it’s reversing a ban on investing in weapons as it adjusts its sustainability policy to match Europe’s new geopolitical reality.

AFTER years spent treating weapons manufacturers with caution, bankers in Europe are now positioning themselves for closer relations with the defense industry.

Russia’s war on Ukraine has led Germany – Europe’s biggest economy – to abandon its decades-old aversion to military spending, and instead embrace what Chancellor Olaf Scholz has called a “new era” of investment.