Written by: Jordan Edward-Wright, Research and Outreach Assistant

They say “Money makes the world go round” and that could not be more true when it comes to the nuclear weapons industry. For weapons that have, since their creation, only ever been used twice in war, today the industry that revolves around their creation and maintenance is staggering. The money keeping this industry and its companies afloat comes from financiers around the world. These financiers input billions of dollars every year into this industry and, in 2024 Canadian institutions alone have contributed $49.187 billion CAD across a diverse group of nuclear weapons producing and maintenance companies. This means your money could be being used to fund these weapons. Your money is power, and if we want to live in a world free of nuclear weapons we have to say no to our money financing these weapons of mass destruction.

The Don't Bank on the Bomb project is an important source of information outlining which financiers are supporting the 24 major nuclear weapon producing companies. This report surveys the 24 major nuclear weapons producing companies and compiles information about each company’s activities and contracts relating to the production and maintenance of nuclear weapons. The report also identifies the financial institutions that support these companies, and tracks how much money is being invested by each institution. 

The 2025 report At Great Cost, identifies 260 financial actors and the manner of their contributions - investments, loans, underwriting and shareholding - which make up the publicly available financial information of each nuclear weapons company. While the financiers of this industry are heavily dominated by American institutions, Canadian institutions are also involved and have been since the Don’t Bank of the Bomb project first started tracking nuclear investments. 

Since the start of Don’t Bank on the Bomb, Canadian financial institutions have consistently been featured among those investing in the nuclear weapons industry. The good news is since the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) entered into force in 2021, the overall number of institutions worldwide contributing to the industry dropped from 338 to 260. This decline showcases the positive impact international treaties can have even on private financial actors. 

Now you may be wondering, did any Canadian institutions pull their investments from nuclear weapons producing companies? The answer is yes!

Here is a list of Canadian financial institutions that no longer finance the nuclear weapons industry since the TPNW entered into force in 2021:

1. AGF Management
2. Desjardins Group
3. Fiera Capital
4. Black Creek Investment Management
5. Caisse Dépôt et Placement du Québec
6. Fairfax Financial
7. Foresters Financial
8. Penderfund Capital Management 

Even with the withdrawal of eight Canadian financiers there are still many who invest in the nuclear weapon industry. Canadian financial institutions that have financed and invested in one or more of the top 24 nuclear weapons companies in 2024 include: 

In $CAD

1. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board: Total invested $948 in Airbus 
2. CI Financial Total invested $209 million in Jacobs Solutions 
3. Manulife Financial: Total invested $154 million in Huntington Ingalls Industries
4. Mawer Investment Management: Total invested $691 million in Bae Systems plc, Thales.
5. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan: Total invested $703 million in  Safran.
6. Power Corporation Canada: Total invested $225 million in Leidos, Textron.
7. Royal Bank of Canada: Total invested $11,615 million in Airbus, Bae Systems plc, Boeing, Fluor, General Dynamics Honeywell International, Jacobs Solution, L3 Harries Technologies, Leidos, Lockheed Martin, Peraton Inc., Rolls-Royce, RTX Corporation, Safran.
8. CIBC: Total invested $843 million in Bechtel, Honeywell International
9. Sunlife Financial: Total invested $17,518 million in Babcock Corporation, Boeing, General Dynamics, Honeywell International, Jacobs Solutions, Leidos, Northrop Grumman, Peraton Inc., Rolls-Royce, RTX Corporation, Thales 
10. Brockfield Corporation: total invested in $102 million in Babcock International.
11. Scotiabank: Total invested $6,213 million in General Dynamics, Honeywell International, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Jacobs Solutions, Leidos, L3 Harris Technologies, Northrop Grumman, Peraton Inc., RTX Corporation  
12. BMO: Total invested $1,286 million in Fluor, Jacobs Solutions, L3 Harris Technologies, Leidos, Peraton Inc., RTX Corporation
13. Toronto-Dominion Bank: Total invested $234 million in Airbus, Bae Systems plc, General Dynamics, Honeywell International, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Jacobs Solutions, L3 Harris Technologies, Leidos, Lockheed Martin, Nrothrop Grumman, Peraton Inc., Rolls-Royce, Textron

Even with the withdrawal of many financial institutions worldwide and in Canada, it is clear Canadian financial involvement is strong. So strong that one of Canada’s financial institutions has been named in the report as one of the top ten financiers. Sun Life Financial has become the first ever Canadian financial institution to be included in the report's top ten financiers list, coming in ninth place. According to the report, Sun Life Financial, as of 2024, has contributed $12, 118 million USD ($16,848 million CAD) to a variety of the 24 nuclear weapons producing companies. 

Moreover, a Canadian company has also been added to the report’s Watchlist. The Watchlist is important as it monitors companies who are involved in nuclear weapons related activities that are not allowed under the TPNW. The Watchlist also monitors companies that have connections to the nuclear weapons enterprise but do not provide enough information about their activities to fully verify their direct involvement with the industry. New to the report’s Watchlist is CAE, a defence company headquartered in Canada and a subcontractor for the Northrop Grumman group.  

Canada may not have its own nuclear weapons, but during the Cold War Canada hosted American nuclear weapons until 1984 when Canada became nuclear weapons free. However, Canada has yet to sign and ratify the TPNW as Canada supports NATO's endorsement that the retention and potential use of these weapons is necessary. Even with no physical weapons in Canada, its financial actors are playing a big role in the financing of nuclear weapons producing companies.

Now more than ever we have to stand strong against nuclear weapons and support the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. This year’s Don’t Bank on the Bomb report shines a spotlight on some of the largest financial institutions in Canada that are investing in companies that make the most indiscriminate weapons to exist. With enough pressure they could divest from the nuclear weapons industry, like many other institutions around the world and in Canada already have. 

Money is power, and by questioning your financial institutions and raising your concern over their investments in this industry of mass destruction, you could make a difference. Make your voice heard by contacting your bank or any of the institutions in the report and make it clear you do not want your money funding these companies. For more tips on how to express your concerns to your bank, visit this page on the Don’t Bank on the Bomb website. Let us know how your call goes by emailing us at [email protected]. 

If money really does run the world, let’s cut off this industry's lifeline and encourage financial institutions to divest from the nuclear weapons industry.  

Full Chart of Canadian Investments in 2024: