Canada and eight partners to sign defence-bank agreement November 30

Canada and eight partner countries plan to sign the founding agreement for a new Defence, Security and Resilience Bank in Luxembourg on November 30.

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Albania, Belgium, Greece, Latvia, Luxembourg, Romania, Türkiye and Ukraine are joining Canada in the initiative. The proposed institution would be headquartered in Canada, with a European hub in Luxembourg.

The federal statement says the bank is intended to mobilize public and private capital for sovereign financing, industrial expansion, critical supply chains and eligible procurement. The participating countries will seek a top-tier credit rating, but no rating has yet been granted.

The group is targeting 2027 for operations to begin. That timeline depends on the founding agreement being signed and the institution being established, so the bank should not be described as already operational.

For Canadian businesses, the project could eventually affect access to financing in defence and security supply chains. The statement does not yet set out lending terms or identify funded projects.

Source: Department of Finance Canada statement, October 26, 2026.

Image: illustrative stock photo of a financial-district building; it does not depict the proposed bank. Photo by SERGEI BEZZUBOV via Unsplash.