Despite a promise in 2021 to review its portfolio for companies complicit with war crimes, CPPIB has failed to do so. CPPIB continues to be invested in seven companies that are on the UN database as complicit with breaking international law, and an additional at least 44 other companies that have been verified as complicit with illegal Israeli occupation activities by AFSC Investigate and/or Who Profits. In total this amounts to more the $10 B investment of public pension funds in Israeli war crimes. Based on four years of analysis, there has been no significant shift in this investment trend. This amounts to approaching 7% of CPPIB public equity investments, and over 1.5% of the total $570B portfolio. WSP, a Montreal headquartered transnational continues to dominate the Canadian equity; in 2022, 105 organizations & many individuals joined to make a submission to the UN to add WSP to the UN database.
The companies listed in the UN Database in which the CPPIB invests
The UN Database was released on February 12, 2020 in the Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights(A/HRC/43/71) after the independent international fact-finding mission to investigate the implications of the Israeli settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people throughout the oPt, including East Jerusalem. There are a total of 112 companies included on the UN list.
The CPPIB holds investments in seven companies on the UN database, with an investment of $.766B. This is
| Company | # of shares (‘000s) | Market Value (M) | Country | WhoProfits Link |
| Bank Hapoalim (e,f)* | 1579 | 18 | Israel | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/hapoalim-bank/ |
| Bank Leumi Le-Israel (e,f)* | 1937 | 20 | Israel | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/leumi-bank/ |
| Booking Holdings Inc (e)* | 160 | 575 | USA | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/booking-com/ |
| Delta Air Lines/Delta Israel (g)* | 127 | 6 | USA/Israel | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/airbnb/ |
| General Mills Inc (g)* | 1116 | 129 | USA | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/general-mills-pillsbury/ |
| Israel Discount Bank Ltd (e,f)* | 1550 | 10 | Israel | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/discount-bank/ |
| Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd (e,f)* | 197 | 8 | Israel | https://www.whoprofits.org/company/mizrahi-tefahot-bank/ |
| TOTAL | $766 |
*The Legend for Human Rights Council Resolution 31/36
Human Rights Council resolution 31/36 defined the database by reference to the listed activities compiled by the fact-finding mission in its report, which include:
e: The provision of services and utilities supporting the maintenance and existence of settlements, including transport.
f: Banking and financial operations helping to develop, expand or maintain settlements and their activities, including loans for housing and the development of businesses.
g: The use of natural resources, in particular water and land, for business purposes.
Companies that AFSC Investigate has verified as complicity in illegal occupation activities.
WSP Global
On September 15, 2022, Al-Haq and Just Peace Advocates submitted a report to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, calling for WSP Global Inc. (WSP), a Canadian company, to be included to the UN database of businesses operating in illegal Israeli settlements (‘the database’). The submission was endorsed by 105 organizations from across Canada and all over the world, in addition to esteemed individuals, such as former Canadian Member of Parliament Libby Davies; former UN Special Rapporteurs Michael Lynk, John Dugard, and Richard Falk; and Noam Chomsky.
WSP, whose major shareholder is the Canadian Public Pension Investment Board, has been contracted to plan, design, maintain, and extend the Jerusalem Light Rail (JLR), an Israeli public tramway system that contributes to the maintenance of illegal Israeli settlements in occupied and annexed Eastern Jerusalem. WSP facilitates the practice of forcible transfer of settlers into the occupied Palestinian territory (OPT), through its construction and servicing of the JLR, while deepening the physical, social and economic integration of the settlements.Through its active maintenance of Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise in occupied Eastern Jerusalem, WSP is involved in gross and systematic violations of fundamental human rights against the protected Palestinian population.
This is the Fourth Year of Review of the CPPIB Annual report to look at investments in companies complicit with war crimes
Through this time there have been thousands of calls to CPPIB to divest from companies complicit with Israeli war crimes.
In March 2021, 70+ organizations from across Canada and around the world, and 130+ individuals including former federal members of parliament Libby Davies & Jim Manly, former UN rapporteur John Dugard, Chris Hedges former NY Times bureau chief, academics, faith community leaders, labour leaders & many others sent a letter to the CPPIB urging divestment from funds listed on the UN Database—funds complicit with Israeli war crimes.
The Canadian Postal Workers Union, the American Friends Service Committee, Al-Haq, the Palestinian Canadian Congress, Independent Jewish Voices, the Canadian Foreign Policy Institute, Boycott from Within, World BEYOND War, and many other labour, faith, civil society, human rights and grassroots organizations joined with the Canadian BDS Coalition and its member groups in this call. See the full list of organizations below.
The message to the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board was that Canada’s public pension plan needs to divest from companies identified by the UN as supporting Israeli war crimes.
See the full list of signatories and the letter to the CPPIB.
Thousands of Canadians say: CPPIB stop investing our public pension in war crimes. Over 5600 letters were sent during 2021 to the CPPIB and Federal Finance Minister, and several thousand more during 2022.
During the 2022 cross country in person and virtual CPPIB stakeholder meetings, CPPIB executive were reminded of their commitment in 2021 to undertake a review of the CPPIB portfolio for investments complicit with war crimes—it seemed they had forgotten their commitment, but they said they would look into it. We are still waiting! Of course, unethical investments are not just in companies complicit with war crimes, but also with fossil fuels, the military complex, privatization of natural resources in the Global South, mining and so on. Read more.
#CPPDivest
Letter sent to CPPIB
Webinar: What is the CPPIB really up to?
The Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) manages a large and rapidly growing fund. The CPPIB however is accountable first and foremost to the federal and provincial governments, not the contributors and beneficiaries. Over the years, the CPPIB has moved from real assets to equities, and from investments in Canadian infrastructure to foreign investments. With our public pension at stake, we need to be aware of what the CPPIB is up to.
Read results from 2022, from 2021 and from 2020.
Changes from 2022 in CPPIB investments include:
Dropped six companies on the UN database
- Airbnb
- Bezeq, the Israel Telecommunication Corp
- Expedia Group
- First International Bank of Israel
- Shufersal Ltd.
- Motorola Solutions Inc.
Added two companies from the UN database
- Delta Air Lines/Delta Israel
- General Mills Inc.
In addition the following companies that were identified from the AFSC Investigate list
Companies dropped in 2023
- Alony Hetz Properties & Investments
- Amot Investments
- Caterpillar Inc
- Chevron Corp
- Cisco Systems Inc
- General Motors Co
- Lockheed Martin Corp
- Palantir Technologies Corp
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd
Companies added by CPPIB in 2023
- Carrefour SA
- Cemex SAB de CV
- General Dynamics Corp
- ICL Group Ltd
- Man Group PLC/Jersey
- Orbia Advance Corp SAB de CV
- Puma SE
- Solvay SA
- Sony Group Corp
- Tata Motors Ltd
The CPPIB is not alone—the Quebec publish pension plan, CDPQ has $12.5B according to its 2022 annual report invested in companies complicit with Israeli war crimes. This is after an adjustment for the sale of Policity by Allied Universal/G4S.
CPPIB Accountability
The CPPIB is accountable to Parliament and to federal as well as provincial ministers who serve as the CPP stewards. The CPPIB is governed and managed independently from the CPP itself and operate at arm’s length from governments.
The accountability is ultimately to our stewards – the federal Finance Minister and the Finance Ministers of the participating provinces.
Along with the CPPIB, we bring this investment in war crimes to the Federal Minister of Finance.
