Statement /
In solidarity with daughter of murdered Indigenous leader
On Tuesday 28 June, the Honduran organisation COPINH and the Global Justice Association filed a complaint with the public prosecutor in the Netherlands against Dutch development bank FMO. For COPINH, this is part of their…
Statement /
Ensure effective enforcement of the Digital Markets Act
The EU has set a high standard for platform regulation. If properly enforced, the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the Digital Services Act (DSA), together with other digital regulation in the pipeline, will be landmark…
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News /
SOMO welcomes two new supervisory board members
SOMO is pleased to announce the appointment of Claire Fernandez and Radboud van Delft to the SOMO Supervisory Board. Both Claire and Radboud bring a wealth of experience, knowledge and passion to the role. Claire…
News /
Shareholder remuneration up by 500% in 20 years
Over the last 20 years, Dutch listed companies have spent more and more of their (borrowed) money on distributing profits to shareholders. Debt increased, investments stagnated and wages fell behind. Publication / June 15, 2022…
Publication /
Shareholders first
How companies became dividend machines
Statement /
FMO fails to meet best practices on financial intermediary lending
In a new Position Statement on Financial Intermediary (FI) Lending, Dutch development bank FMO argues for limited responsibility over the outcomes of investments that are channeled through commercial banks, investment funds, and other financial intermediaries,…
Long read /
The Energy Charter Treaty
An obstacle to the energy transition
Long read /
Testing the occupation
Identifying mislabelled food from illegal Israeli settlements in European supermarkets through isotopic testing
News /
SOMO welcomes new funding from the Ford Foundation
SOMO is pleased to announce a substantial investment by the Ford Foundation in our work and organisational development. In 2022, SOMO will receive $1,395,000. Ford’s Building Institutions and Networks (BUILD) grants focus on helping social justice…
Statement /
European Union: rules for batteries should cover bauxite, copper, iron
The European Union’s proposed batteries regulation should require importers and manufacturers to source the bauxite, copper, and iron used in batteries responsibly, a coalition of 16 organizations said today. The coalition includes Amnesty International, Earthworks,…
News /
How Dutch pension are disposing of their Russian investments
Together with Follow the Money, SOMO investigated how pension funds are disposing of their investments in Russian bonds and shares. A month ago, PFZW (one of the biggest Dutch pension funds) and other pension funds…
News /
At least sixteen Gazprom subsidiaries in the Netherlands
The largest gas company in the world, Gazprom, has at least sixteen Dutch subsidiaries in Amsterdam, SOMO-research finds. The Russian state-owned company falls outside the current sanction rules, which means that Gazprom’s Dutch letterbox companies…
Publication /
Enabling Putin’s war
The ties between Amsterdam’s financial centre and Gazprom
Publication /
Pay and the pandemic
The decoupling of Dutch boardroom pay from performance during the Covid-19 outbreak
News /
CEO salaries rise sharply despite corona crisis
Despite the corona crisis, the incomes of CEOs and other top managers of the biggest publicly listed Dutch companies have increased, according to research by the University of Groningen and SOMO. Even though average company…
News /
Financially strong investor ready to take the Dutch housing market by storm
Blackstone has more than US$ 46.1 billion ready to buy worldwide real estate such as offices and residential property. Currently Blackstone is a small player in the Netherlands, but the company has the potential to…
Publication /
Blackstone as new landlord
How large investors are gaining ground on the Dutch housing market
Statement /
European Parliament approval of draft Batteries Regulation is a welcome step towards just energy transition
SOMO and GoodElectronics welcome the EU draft legislation on batteries approved on Thursday by the European Parliament and call on EU member states to agree on the text without delays or attempts to water it…