Veritas updated its principles for responsible investing at the end of 2025, but the core of the principles remained unchanged: Veritas primarily promotes responsibility in its investments through active ownership.
“It has always been clear to us that the world is changed through engagement, not exclusion. We act as an active owner by voting at general meetings and by engaging directly with company management,” says Veritas portfolio manager Jussi Häkkinen.
This time, exclusion was also added to the principles.
“However, it is a last resort for us if the desired change cannot be achieved through active ownership. Exclusion does not solve real‑world sustainability challenges; it merely shifts the problems for others to deal with.”
A responsible investor cannot exclude the defence industry
Veritas’ investment principles have always allowed investments in defence industry companies, but for the sake of transparency, the defence industry was added as a separate section to the responsible investing principles.
Russia’s war of aggression has changed Finland’s security environment in recent years.
“In my view, a responsible investor cannot exclude the defence industry from its portfolio. The defence industry plays a key role in maintaining societal security and stability. Without a defence industry, we would not be able to protect societies from external threats when democracy and freedom are under attack,” Häkkinen says.
Due to the risks associated with the defence industry, Veritas nevertheless seeks to limit direct investments to companies headquartered in EU or NATO countries.
Veritas does not invest directly in controversial weapons. However, part of an investee company’s business may be linked to controversial weapons if its primary activity is something else.
According to Häkkinen, Veritas’ responsible investing principles guide the monitoring of human rights and norm violations by investee companies. Veritas monitors such violations in order to avoid companies that breach international norms.
“The defence industry is a complex sector, and we recognise that it involves risks related to different types of weapons and their potential use in situations where international humanitarian law is violated or where weapons are used for purposes other than national security and self‑defence. Oversight of production and supply chains in the sector is challenging, but we take these risks into account in our investment activities to the extent possible.”
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