Banks| Policies| Dodgy Deals| Campaigns
About us| Blog| Publications| Successes| Contact us| Donate
About BankTrack
Visit us
Organisation
Our team
Our board
Guiding principles
Team up with us
Jobs at BankTrack
Our annual reports
Funding and finances
History
BankTrack in the media
Our privacy policy
Donate
2023-01-23 00:00:00
Berta Cáceres: new rules for banks could help stop defender killings
2023-01-16 00:00:00
In the balance: Why European due diligence legislation must cover financial services
2022-12-08 00:00:00
Exposed: Western banks funding Qatar’s carbon bombs
2022-12-08 00:00:00
Right-wing attack on sustainable finance is the latest form of climate denial
2022-12-14 11:08:26
HSBC announces it will no longer finance new oil and gas fields
2022-10-13 15:56:39
More major banks and insurers refuse to support EACOP
2022-09-16 10:38:48
European Parliament passes emergency resolution against human rights violations & environmental threats linked to EACOP
2022-06-27 09:49:16
Crédit Agricole takes first step to phase out from the oil and gas sector
Connect
2022-11-22 00:00:00
Banking on Thin Ice: Two years in the heat
2022-11-17 00:00:00
BankTrack Global Human Rights Benchmark 2022
2022-10-21 00:00:00
Burning forests in the name of clean energy? How banks are failing to exclude the harmful wood biomass industry from finance
2022-06-28 00:00:00
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP): Finance Risk Update No. 3
2022-04-05 00:00:00
The BankTrack Human Rights Benchmark Asia
2022-03-30 00:00:00
Banking on Climate Chaos 2022
See all publications
Browse
Home
Banks
Policies
Dodgy Deals
Campaigns
About
About BankTrack
Donate
Contact BankTrack
Publications
Victories
Follow Us
News
BankTrack blog
Facebook
Twitter Fossil Banks No Thanks Twitter Fossil Banks No Thanks Instagram
Affiliate Websites
Fossil Banks No Thanks
StopEACOP
Forests & Finance
Banks & Biodiversity
Drop JBS
Bank of Coal
Don't Buy into Occupation
Home › News
New bank links to Myanmar junta and atrocities found
19 international banks together invest over US$65 billion in shares of companies with ties to the Myanmar military junta
Start
Banks
Dodgy Deals

By: BankTrack & Justice For Myanmar
2021-07-28

Contact:

BankTrack: Hannah Greep, Human Rights Campaigner, 

hannah@banktrack.org

Justice For Myanmar: Yadanar Maung, Spokesperson, 

media@justiceformyanmar.org


Share this page:

Protest against the military coup in Myanmar. Photo: Myanmar Now
Go to:
Start
Related Banks
Related Dodgy Deals

The exposure of commercial banks to companies supporting the military junta in Myanmar is greater than previously found, shows new research that examined subsidiary funds and asset managers, such as Amundi, Nikko Asset Management, Natixis, and DWS investments. 19 international banks hold shares worth over US$65 billion across 18 companies affiliated with the military junta and its conglomerates in Myanmar. These companies have either direct and longstanding commercial ties to Myanmar’s military, or to state entities that the military now controls as a result of the February 1, 2021 attempted coup.

A new update to a research paper first published by BankTrack and Justice For Myanmar in May 2021 found 19 commercial banks each with over US$1 billion in shares in the 18 companies. The companies include Bharat Electronics Inc, a company that supplies defence equipment to the Myanmar military; POSCO, an oil and gas company and one of the Myanmar military’s closest international business partners; and eight oil and gas companies including Chevron, Shell and Total that operate in Myanmar together with the Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise.

The bank with the most extensive shareholdings in companies linked to the junta was Crédit Agricole of France, with holdings worth over US$ 12 billion. The majority of these shares are held by the asset management firm Amundi, which is 70% owned by the bank. The other largest shareholders are Japanese banks Sumitomo Mitsui Trust and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial as well as US banks Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase.

All of these banks have a responsibility to act on their business relationship with these companies and to account for how they are doing so. The OECD Guidelines for multinational enterprises and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights both clearly set out that international investors, including banks, have a responsibility to use their leverage to ensure their investee companies act to prevent or mitigate human rights abuses. Investors are expected to divest from companies where they repeatedly fail to act.

BankTrack and Justice For Myanmar are calling on international banks and all other institutional investors to immediately divest from companies with longstanding, direct ties to the military and its conglomerates, and to demand that other companies halt all payments to military-controlled entities immediately.

Hannah Greep, human rights campaigner at BankTrack: “This expanded research shows that international banks hold even more shares in these companies, through their subsidiary funds and asset managers, than originally identified. The responsibility of the banks and its subsidiaries under the OECD Guidelines and UNGPs, however,  remains the same. If they fail to act in accordance with those standards, they will be deemed complicit in the crimes being committed by the Myanmar military.”

A 2019 report by the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar showed that the military owns and operates two large holding companies: Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL) and Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC). The business empire controlled by these companies enables the military to secure financial resources to support its unlawful activities. The UN Fact-Finding Mission called on foreign companies to sever ties with these entities or risk being complicit in contributing to the financial resources available to the military.

The attempted military coup in Myanmar has now lasted over 5 months. Since then, over 900 people have been killed by the Myanmar security forces and over 5,000 people have been detained, according to data from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma). The military continues to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity with total impunity. The military has murdered, arbitrarily detained, tortured, raped, and sexually violated innocent people who continued to stand up for democracy. If international investors fail to take immediate action, they too will be complicit in these crimes. The international community must support the people of Myanmar by stopping the flow of money to military-owned businesses and helping to dismantle the military cartel.

Yadanar Maung, spokesperson at Justice For Myanmar: “The Myanmar military’s campaign of terror is enabled by the complicity of international companies that continue to do business with the illegal junta and its conglomerates. Banks have a responsibility to take action against investees that are complicit in the junta’s atrocities. Now Myanmar is being ravaged by Covid-19 and the military’s response has been to buy more arms, arrest doctors, raid clinics and steal supplies. The people of Myanmar need investors to act now to help stem the tragic loss of life."

This research follows the publication in March 2021 of the “Investing in the Military Cartel: Two Dutch pension funds invest US$2.3 billion in companies linked to the Myanmar military’s atrocities” report by Justice for Myanmar and OECD Watch and May 2021 resource “Public Companies Financially Supporting the Illegitimate Myanmar Junta” by Justice For Myanmar. This report is an update of our earlier report (May 2021) which highlighted nine banks’ investments in these companies.


The 19 banks identified as having shareholdings each worth over US$ 1 billion in the 18 companies are: Crédit Agricole, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, BPCE Group, Credit Suisse, Mizuho Financial, Société Générale, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Royal Bank of Canada, BNP Paribas, Barclays, DZ Bank and Toronto-Dominion Bank.

Go to:
Start
Related Banks
Related Dodgy Deals

Related banks

Bank of America United States

active

Barclays United Kingdom

active

BNP Paribas France

active

BPCE France

active

Crédit Agricole France

active

Credit Suisse Switzerland

active

Deutsche Bank Germany

active

DZ Bank Germany

active

Goldman Sachs United States

active

JPMorgan Chase United States

active

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) Japan

active

Mizuho Financial Group Japan

active

Morgan Stanley United States

active

Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) Canada

active

Société Générale France

active

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Japan

active

Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD Bank) Canada

active

UBS Switzerland

active

Wells Fargo United States

active
Go to:
Start
Related Banks
Related Dodgy Deals

Related Dodgy Deals

Companies

active

Adani Group India

Coal Electric Power Generation | Coal Mining | Oil and Gas Extraction
active

ENI Italy

Oil and Gas Extraction
active

Shell United Kingdom

LNG Terminal | Oil and Gas Extraction | Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil | Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
active

TotalEnergies France

Gas Electric Power Generation | Oil and Gas Extraction | Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil | Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
There are no companies active for this item now.
Browse
Home
Banks
Policies
Dodgy Deals
Campaigns
About
About BankTrack
Donate
Contact BankTrack
Publications
Victories
Follow Us
News
BankTrack blog
Facebook
Twitter Fossil Banks No Thanks Twitter Fossil Banks No Thanks Instagram
Affiliate Websites
Fossil Banks No Thanks
StopEACOP
Forests & Finance
Banks & Biodiversity
Drop JBS
Bank of Coal
Don't Buy into Occupation
Vismarkt 15
6511 VJ Nijmegen
The Netherlands

Tel: +31 24 324 9220
Contact@banktrack.org
©2016 BankTrack                Webdesign by BankTrack and EASYmind
BankTrack is a registered charity in the Netherlands (ANBI) - RSIN 813874658
Find our privacy policy here

Stay up to date

Sign up now for all BankTrack's news


Make a comment

Your comment will be reviewed, before being posted