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Weapons Group Points to Ukraine in Bid to Shape ESG Rulebook

  • EU expert group publishes report mapping out social taxonomy
  • Debate over weapons as social asset is set to intensify
A damaged residential building following Russian missile strikes in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Feb. 26.

A damaged residential building following Russian missile strikes in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Feb. 26.

Photographer: Erin Trieb/Bloomberg
Updated on

With a Russian invasion right on its doorstep, Europe now finds itself discussing whether weapons should be listed as ESG assets, to grant them more favorable access to financing.

The bloc is about to embark on the next stage of a taxonomy intended to define environmental, social and governance investing rules. The Platform on Sustainable Finance -- a group convened by the European Union -- published its blueprint for the kinds of activities that might be deemed socially sustainable on Monday.