SfC’s confrontation at the EU Defence Industrial Investment Forum

At the end of November, the EU Defence Industrial Investment Forum, “Investing in the EU’s defence & security: a new political priority”, hosted by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS), took place in Brussels and online. The aim was to discuss ‘how ESG barriers hinder the financing of defence companies and how these can be removed to encourage banks and investors to invest more in the defence industry’.  

A representative of the Shareholders for Change network, Tommy Piemonte, Head of Sustainable Investment Research at Bank für Kirche und Caritas (BKC), was excluded from the discussion during the meeting. For this reason, SfC filed an official complaint with the EU Commission in December 2024.

The European Commission’s DG DEFIS replied that Piemonte had been temporarily removed – and promptly re-admitted – ‘to ensure the smooth facilitation of the discussion and to give all participants an equal opportunity to participate via the general chat’. The reason would therefore be completely unrelated to the content of his critical questions. 

Photo: dimitrisvetsikas1969, Pixabay