Sustainable finance, weapons excluded from NEF fund portfolios

There is much discussion in Europe about the possibility for sustainable funds to also invest in controversial weapons and, in particular, nuclear weapons. The green light came from Brussels at the end of December. Those who, on the other hand, have not been investing in weapons for years is the Luxembourg Sicav Nef, a multi-manager and multi-compartment, which belongs to Neam, a management company of the Cassa Centrale banca (Credito Cooperativo) group. 'Even before Europe addressed the issue of sustainability, we had already included a number of exclusions from our investments such as weapons and tobacco,' said Flavio Bonomo, CEO of Neam. 'And I want to remind you that when the Italian law on anti-personnel mines and cluster bombs came into force, we were already aligned. We did not have to change anything in our funds'.

Bonomo, during the press conference presenting the Nef fund data, referred to Law 220 of 2021 on the prohibition of financial, insurance and pension intermediaries from financing and investing in companies that produce anti-personnel mines and cluster bombs. The law came into force in February 2025 after the publication of the regulations of the sector authorities.

During the data presentation, the achievement of EUR 10 billion in assets under management by Sicav Nef was announced. "A very significant result, achieved mainly thanks to the distribution activities of the banks affiliated to the Cassa Centrale group, as well as the contribution of other distributors and institutional investors," Bonomo emphasised.

Among other things, more than 70% of assets under management have been classified as sustainable under Articles 8 and 9 of the Sfdr regulation on the transparency of sustainable finance. The latter regulation is currently being amended with the abolition of Articles 8 and 9 and the introduction of new ones, including the so-called 'Transition' category. The latter provides for investment in companies that have presented a clear and effective energy transition plan. "The introduction of the new category is good," Bonomo added on the sidelines of the press conference. "We already invest not only in the top performers of sustainability but also in companies that have a transition plan.

Also present at the event was Marco Galliani, chief wealth management officer of Cassa Centrale banca, who provided important insights into strategies in asset management. "The Nef funds play a central role in the Cassa Centrale group's distribution strategies, even though they are part of an open architecture that allows the clients of the affiliated banks to have access to 13 investment houses and a total offer of about 3 thousand funds. 2025 was a record year for Nef : net inflows reached 785 million euro, allowing 6.7 billion euro of assets under management placed on the group's banks".