Access to finance

The defence industry is a capital-intensive sector. Defence companies need to invest heavily and with a long-term vision in assembly lines, human resources, supply chains and research, development and innovation. At the same time, there is a permanent entrepreneurial risk of orders that can be cancelled or downsized due to changes in priorities or the political landscape.

Furthermore, product life cycles often span decades, from initial research to final deployment and user-related services such as maintenance. As such, access to reliable and affordable financial services is crucial for maintaining a robust and competitive European defence industrial and technological base.

Regrettably, in recent years, an increasing number of defence-related companies across Europe, particularly SMEs, have struggled to access basic services like bank accounts or insurance. This is often due to the ESG criteria of financial actors, which exclude cooperation with defence companies.

ASD has identified secure access to finance as a key issue that concerns the defence industry across Europe and companies of all sizes. ASD is therefore in a close dialogue with financial actors and regulators from the European and national level to call for the financial sector to recognise the strategic importance of the defence industry for Europe and its contribution to the sustainable development of our continent – because without security there can be no sustainability.