Netwerk Vlaanderen (EN)

ING’s dirty laundry and greenwashing (News)

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 10:12:41 +0100

ING’s costumer service department recently wrote a letter to clients that are concerning climate change. This letter was in reaction to a postcard which clients had sent to their banks.

Update BankSecrets (News)

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 13:15:17 +0100

The BankSecrets website will be updated next year. In the meantime, we would like to keep you posted on some current banks' secrets, starting in Cairo, Burma and Ghent...

Bankrolling Climate Change (News)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0100

New study! "Bankrolling Climate Change" examines commercial banks' lending for the coal industry and provides the first comprehensive climate ranking for financial institutions.

Coal Fair: the Video (Video)

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 23:00:00 +0100

June 2010 Netwerk Vlaanderen launched the campaign Bankroet, stimulating Belgian banks to contribute to the fight against climate change.

Bankroet Coal Fair (Flickr Gallery)

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 23:00:00 +0100

June 2010 Netwerk Vlaanderen launched the campaign Bankroet, stimulating Belgian banks to contribute to the fight against climate change.

New English website! (News)

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 13:45:21 +0100

Netwerk Vlaanderen is proud to present her new English Drupal-based website! Come take a look at our fresh digital platform with loads of space for news, blogs, pictures and videos, all concerning the mighty world of finance. Any comments or suggestions? Feel free to post them! Netwerk Vlaanderen is also represented at Facebook and Twitter.

Join the Coal Fired Power Fair (News)

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 13:32:36 +0100

For banks, climate is important, but making as much profit as possible is even more important. Bankroet does not put up with steamy declarations and vague intentions. Therefore we organise a Coal Fair at the Kouter in Ghent 22 October. Join the struggle against weak excuses and bowl away coal financing! Put pressure on your own bank.

Dutch coal fired power plant under fire (Blog post)

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 22:52:40 +0100

In the meanwhile in Holland, Greenpeace is fighting RWE/Essent who are building a coal fired power plant in the Eemshaven. The construction is already halfway and 2.6 billion euros is invested, but as the court declared, the energy giant does not have a legal permit. Local authorities are eager to 'make it right', but Greenpeace will not give up the battle. "Coal belongs to the past," they rightfully say. Photo: © Greenpeace/ Toala Olivares

British insurer bans cluster munitions producers (Blog post)

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 02:09:38 +0100

Good news for anti cluster munitions campaigners in the UK! One of the world's largest insurance companies, Aviva, has created a 'black list' of 12 arms manufactures which include the US defence giants Lockheed Martin, Textron and Alliant Techsystems.

Worldwide Investments in Cluster Munitions (Publication)

Thu, 31 Mar 2011 23:00:00 +0100

Netwerk Vlaanderen campaigns around banks and their investments in weapons.

Coal's Burial (Video)

Wed, 02 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0100

On the 1st of March 2011, Netwerk Vlaanderen buried coal in front of Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas and ING, putting the dirty energy source where it belongs: under the ground.

Update BankSecrets (News)

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 16:51:28 +0100

Many people have participated in Bank Secrets, an on-line action of Netwerk Vlaanderen. Thank you for this! With your support we are able to campaign against harmful bank investments. Right now, Netwerk Vlaanderen runs the campaign Bankroet against investments in new coal-fired power plants. Help us collect 5000 subscribers for the petition!

BNP Paribas: stop radioactive investments! (News)

Fri, 29 Oct 2010 12:44:21 +0100

Nuclear energy is not only the most dangerous form of energy, it is also one of the most expensive. To raise the many billions of euros needed to build even a single nuclear reactor, utility companies rely heavily on banks and other financial market players. BNP Paribas, the world’s leading banker of nuclear projects, is currently planning to provide financing for the construction of an out of date nuclear power station – Angra 3 – in Brazil. Greenpeace launches an anti-campaign.

Who profits from the occupation? (News)

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 15:22:27 +0100

The research project Who Profits from the Occupation presented a detailed report on the involvement of Israelian banks in the occupation of Palestina this month. Loans for builing projects or the aquisistion of houses in the occupied areas, financial service to the colonies’ community councils, as well as the controle over the financial market in Palestina are brought under the attention. Belgium based bank Dexia is one of the involved banks.

SOMO: CSR in financial sector severly limited (News)

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 15:01:34 +0100

Last year ING, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank together owned almost €150 million of shares in PetroChina, one of the most important players in the oil industry in Sudan fuelling the conflict. This alarming example in the recently published SOMO report Investing Responsibly: A Financial Puzzle reveals the severe limitations of Sustainable Asset Management in the financial sector.

Support Netwerk Vlaanderen online (News)

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 14:47:01 +0100

Our society is facing enormous challenges. We have to fight global warming, while the credit crisis is working its way through banks and economies to entire nations. The financial system has to be changed drastically. But where to start? Netwerk Vlaanderen wants to stimulate politicians, banks and individuals to take ethical steps and asks you to help us.

Ghent gets its own currency! (News)

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 14:18:41 +0100

The Ghent area Rabot-Blaisantvest is the first in Flanders to have its own currency! Citizens who take on activities in the public area to create a clean, green, safe and pleasant Rabot, will from now on be appreciated in so-called Torekes. This Torekes can be spend at a number of local shops, at the cinema, to buy ecologically sound materials, to rent an allotment, to take a bus or a tram… Check out the money at www.torekes.be

Australian banks too invest billions in coal (News)

Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:39:12 +0100

A report released at the beginning of October by Greenpeace shows Australia's major banks provided loans worth $5.5 billion to the coal industry over the past five years, seven times more than the $784 million lent to the renewable energy sector. Nevertheless, Australia has some of the most abundant sources of clean energy in the world. With the right investment and supportive policies, Greenpeace says, Australia could quickly become a clean energy powerhouse.

Visit to Ruien power station with Netwerk Vlaanderen (Flickr Gallery)

Mon, 11 Oct 2010 12:08:43 +0100

Bicycle manifestation 'Climate and a Social Justice' in a port of Antwerp (Flickr Gallery)

Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:58:10 +0100

Bankers on Tenterhooks (Publication)

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 23:00:00 +0100

This report shows that Belgian banks finance the building of new coal plants, the extraction of oil from tar sands and deforestation with our savings and investment money.

Ilisu Dam Turkey: Sinking History (Video)

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 12:28:39 +0100

An ancient village in Hasankeyf, Southeast Turkey, is in danger of being submerged under 30 metres of water due to a new dam, leaving five thousand people homeless and destitute.

Global Finance selects safest banks (Blog post)

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 02:08:29 +0100

Global Finance magazine published her annual ranking of the world's 50 safest banks. And guess what: the first five spots are taken by public, European banks. Belgian banks KBC and Dexia are nowhere to be seen in the list, even though three years ago Dexia was number eight! Maybe we really do need a public bank here as well?

Stop investments in coal fired power plants (News)

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 09:33:55 +0100

Banks active in Belgium finance coal plants with our savings and investment money. These are the results of new research by Netwerk Vlaanderen, presented in the report Bankers on hot coals. Coal is a disaster for the climate. The new campaign Bankroet ('Bankruptcy') wants to end investments in coal fired power plants. You can support the campaign by signing the petition.

Vuurfeest: launch of campaign 'Bankroet' (Flickr Gallery)

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 12:18:11 +0100

De Neveneffecten, Vera Dua (Groen!), Bert Anciaux (Sp.a), Low Impact Man, Johannes from The Van Jets, actress Joke Devynck, Nic Balthazar and mentalist Gili walking on hot coals at Vuurfeest organi

Flemish celebrities walk on hot coals (Video)

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:50:39 +0100

Flemish celebrities such as de Neveneffecten, Joke Devynck, Nic Balthazar en Gili supported Netwerk's campaign for durable banking Bankruptcy in a daring way.

Bankruptcy threatens banks operating in Belgium (News)

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 07:35:53 +0100

In the past two years BNP Paribas, KBC, Dexia, Citibank, Deutsche Bank, ING and AXA have invested at least 25 billion euro in climate-threatening activities including new coal plants, oil extracted from tar sands, or the decimation of rain forests. Those are the conclusions from the report “Bankers on Hot Coals”, which Netwerk Vlaanderen is presenting today. The NGO calls on the banks to cease investing in new coal plants immediately en therefore launches the petition Bankroet (Bankruptcy) in cooperation with Greenpeace, WWF, Friends of the Earth, BBL and KWB.

Top financial institutions invest over US$43 billion in producers of cluster bombs (News)

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 09:02:59 +0100

Almost a year and a half after the historic signing of the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) in Oslo in December 2008, 146 financial institutions from 15 countries around the world still provide over US$ 43 billion worth of investments and financial services to seven producers of cluster bombs. These are the updated findings of the most comprehensive report to date on global financial investments in these banned weapons, ‘Worldwide investments in cluster munitions; A shared responsibility’, released today in Geneva. Campaigners around the world are now calling on regulators and financial institutions to disinvest from producers of these banned weapons.

See the Key Findings.pdf

(K)laveren in Gent (Flickr Gallery)

Sun, 11 Apr 2010 12:23:35 +0100

De Oost-Vlaamse Gezinsdag kreeg in 2010 het thema 'geluk'. Netwerk stelde ter discussie in welke mate geld daaraan bijdraagt...

ING one step forward in ranking Netwerk Vlaanderen (News)

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 11:32:37 +0100

ING has in the past year adjusted its policy concerning investments in the weapon industry. Now ING can make one step forward in the Netwerk’s ethical ranking. Thanks to the efforts made by ING, the risk of harmful investments for clients of this bank is no longer ‘very high’ but ‘high’.

Belgium no longer international frontrunner (News)

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:14:18 +0100

Belgian parliamentarians and diplomats played a crucial role in the process that led to the Convention on Cluster Munitions that 107 states signed so far. As the convention will go into force any minute now, Netwerk Vlaanderen urges minister Reynders to immediately produce a blacklist of cluster munitions producers, thereby retaking Belgium’s position as an international frontrunner.

Tobacco producers excluded from Pension Fund (News)

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 11:49:59 +0100

The Norwegian Ministry of Finance has decided to exclude 17 companies that produce tobacco from the Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG). The divestment of shares in these companies has already been completed. Earlier, the Pension Fund put companies seriously poluting the environment, violating human rights or producing inhumane weaponry on its 'black list'.

Update Bank Secrets (News)

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 11:44:40 +0100

Many people have participated in Bank Secrets, an on-line action of Netwerk Vlaanderen. Thank you for this! With your support we have been able to campaign against harmful bank investments. Which has not been without consequences. A short update.

Credit Suisse fined 536mln dollar for Burma ties (News)

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:16:01 +0100

Credit Suisse has been fined 536 million dollar after being found guilty of violating US sanctions through years of undetected transactions with so-called “rogue” regimes, such as Burma. US prosecutors alleged that Switzerland’s largest bank had carried out thousands of secret transactions with Iran, Sudan, Libya, and Cuba, as well as Burma. These were done through US banks to avoid detection.

'Sustainable Finance' undermines food security of Lao communities (News)

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:34:51 +0100

The Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project - a dam and water diversion project now under construction in Central Laos - poses a threat to the livelihoods and food security of local communities living in the project area. The project also violates Lao national law and the Equator Principles, according to a new report and video released today by International Rivers; BankTrack, FIVAS, Les Amis de la Terre; and Justice and International Mission Unit, Uniting Church in Australia.

Bankers in power in European Commission (News)

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:11:21 +0100

More than 80% of the non-governmental 'experts' advising the EU Commission on financial market regulation, represent big banks and investment funds. Thus can be read in a new report by ALTER-EU. “A disaster for democracy,” says MEP Poul Nyrup Rasmussen.

ActionAid is changing banks after cluster munitions report (News)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:36:56 +0100

ActionAid International is planning to withdraw its business from HSBC after having read the Netwerk Vlaanderen report. ActionAid International’s head of finance Richard Callaghan said: “HSBC is highlighted as they were the advisers on recent debt and equity raising exercises and appear to have earned commission from underwriting. I am very concerned by this and ActionAid are looking to remove all business from HSBC asap.”

Top financial institutions still invest US$20 billion in cluster bombs (News)

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:36:02 +0100

Almost one year on from the historic signing of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Oslo in December 2008, 138 financial institutions still provide over US$ 20 billion worth of investments and financial services to eight producers of cluster bombs. These are the findings of new research done by Netwerk Vlaanderen and IKV Pax Christi. The report authors are presenting their publication today at the financial heart of London.

Read more on The Report, Key Findings and Press release.pdf

Excursion to the Thorntonbank sea windmill park (Flickr Gallery)

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 12:34:49 +0100

Excursion to the Thorntonbank sea windmill park on 18.10.2009.

Belgium bans investments in depleted uranium weapons (News)

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 08:40:31 +0100

New Belgian law is the first of its kind
Brussels, 3rd July 2009, Netwerk Vlaanderen, Belgian Coalition 'Stop Uranium Weapons!', Réseau Financement Alternatif

Yesterday the Belgian Parliament unanimously approved a law forbidding investments in depleted uranium weapons. Belgium is now the first country to prevent the flow of money to producers of uranium weapons. This law complements the country’s ban on their manufacture, testing, use, sale and stockpiling which came into force on June 21st last. The use of depleted uranium armour piercing munitions during combat causes the release of chemically toxic and radioactive particles which represent a long term hazard for the environment as well as for human health.

Belgium bans investments in depleted uranium weapons (News)

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:43:41 +0100

New Belgian law is the first of its kind

On the 2nd of July, the Belgian Parliament unanimously approved a law forbidding investments in depleted uranium weapons. Belgium is now the first country to prevent the flow of money to producers of uranium weapons. This law complements the country’s ban on their manufacture, testing, use, sale and stockpiling which came into force on June 21st last. The use of depleted uranium armour piercing munitions during combat causes the release of chemically toxic and radioactive particles which represent a long term hazard for the environment as well as for human health.

Launching Banksecrets.eu (Flickr Gallery)

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:58:50 +0100

Campagna per la Riforma della Banca Mundiale (Italy), Friends of the Earth (France), Netwerk Vlaanderen (Belgium), Platform (UK), SETEM (Spain) and Urgewald (Germany) expose investments in harmful

Banktrack members unveil banks' secrets (News)

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:30:00 +0100

Six european organizations launch a revealing website: www.banksecrets.eu

Campagna per la Riforma della Banca Mundiale (Italy), Friends of the Earth (France), Netwerk Vlaanderen (Belgium), Platform (UK), SETEM (Spain) and Urgewald (Germany) expose investments in harmful practices and companies of thirteen large European banks in this new website. Despite of the banking crisis, financial institutions continue to do harmful investments in a sphere of secrecy. To expose banks´ secrets, activists ‘undressed the banks’ by staging parallel theatrical activities in the main European capitals.

Website Banksecrets (News)

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 21:00:00 +0100

June 2009

In june 2009 six member organisations of Banktrack did the research for the website www.banksecrets.eu. The research question was if 13 of the biggest european banks (Banco Santander, Barclays, BBVA, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, ING, Intesa Sanpaulo, HSBC, RBS, Société générale en Unicredit) invest in 14 harmful projects and companies (Belene, PetroChina, Dongfeng, EADS, Freeport McMoran, HidroAysén, Ilisu, Lundin, Sakhalin, Suncor, Total, Vedanta Resources,Wal-Mart en Textron). Here you will find a profile of each bank summarizing the research results and the harmful investments.

Concerned investors send bailiff to Minister Reynders (Flickr Gallery)

Fri, 08 May 2009 13:08:30 +0100

On 20 March 2007 the Belgian parliament unanimously approved a law banning investments in cluster munitions and anti-personnel mines. Two years later, the law is still being breached.

Concerned investors send bailiff to Minister Reynders (News)

Thu, 07 May 2009 15:25:09 +0100

Investments in cluster munitions and anti-personnel mines remains possible two years after ban

On 20 March 2007 the Belgian parliament unanimously approved a law banning investments in cluster munitions and anti-personnel mines. Two years later, the law is still being breached. Fortis, Dexia, Delta Lloyd, Citibank and Bank Degroof offer funds that invest in producers of cluster munitions, according to new research from Netwerk Vlaanderen. For this reason, peace organisations and concerned investors have sent a bailiff to Belgian finance minister Reynders. As long as he has not drawn up an essential implementing decree that makes the law operational, individuals and institutions run the risk of unwittingly breaching the law.

BNP Paribas: very high risk of harmful investments (News)

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 11:26:26 +0100

New research from Netwerk Vlaanderen shows need for regulation of the banking industry

Customers of BNP Paribas run a very high risk of harmful investments. This is revealed in new research that forms part of the "Banking Secrets" campaign of Netwerk Vlaanderen. The French bank owns or manages 657 million dollars in shares of ten companies that harm people and the environment, such as mining company Barrick Gold and Freeport McMoran. Netwerk Vlaanderen conducted research into the harmful investments made by AXA, Citibank, Dexia, Deutsche Bank, ING, KBC and Triodos Bank regarding environment, peace, freedom & democracy and decent working conditions. The results are disappointing.

The Ethical aspects of Microfinance (News)

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 11:20:26 +0100

BELSIF, the ‘Belgian Sustainable and Socially Responsible Investment Forum’ organizes a session about The Ethical aspects of Microfinance in Brussels, on Wednesday 1th of April.BELSIF is a not-for-profit organization whose aim is to stimulate, promote and support all types of sustainable and socially responsible investments (SRI). Netwerk Vlaanderen is member of the forum. You are welcome to join the session. Attendance is free, but please register before 25th March by sending an e-mail to info@belsif.

Crisis of Credit (Video)

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 12:39:51 +0100

A short film explaining credit crisis by Jonathan Jarvis. See www.jonathanjarvis.com

Major banks facilitate corruption in world's poorest countries (News)

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:53:44 +0100

As G20 finance ministers meet in London to discuss how to rescue the global financial system and prevent the next disaster, a new report by anti-corruption NGO Global Witness shows how some of the world’s biggest banks have been dealing with some of the world’s most corrupt regimes.