Citi has signed up to support NATO’s new Call to Action, joining the alliance-backed initiative to mobilize private capital for defence production, industrial resilience, and military technology across NATO economies.

The announcement comes as NATO leaders gather in Ankara, facing the dual challenge of increasing defence spending and ensuring the industrial base can rapidly convert budget commitments into military capability.
The initiative calls on banks, investors, and other capital providers to increase financing for companies developing and manufacturing the technologies essential for Allied deterrence and defence.

“A strong and resilient Europe is in all our interests. Citi is proud to support NATO’s Call to Action and help mobilize the capital and financial expertise needed to strengthen the Alliance’s security for the long term.” – said Nacho Gutiérrez Orrantia, CEO Citi Europe.

“A strong and resilient Europe is in all our interests. Citi is proud to support NATO’s Call to Action and help mobilize the capital and financial expertise needed to strengthen the Alliance’s security for the long term.” – said Stephanie von Friedeburg, Global Head of Public Sector Group, Citi.

Citi works with sovereign clients, ministries of defence and NATO-aligned governments on procurement, financing, payment and liquidity flows, while enabling defence companies to unlock the capital needed to scale production, strengthen resilience, and drive innovation.
Citi is the only global bank with a continued presence in Ukraine and has supported the Ukrainian government, public-sector institutions and the emerging defence ecosystem since Russia’s invasion.
The bank has also developed a transparent payment mechanism to facilitate the delivery of defence equipment to Ukraine, with controlled disbursements and governance around donor-funded procurement. Citi sees the structure as scalable and potentially applicable to wider Ukraine reconstruction.

“The challenge for governments is turning defence priorities into executable programmes,” – said Georgi Yordanov, Citi leaderfor defense in Public Sector ine Europe. “This is a strategic effort to bridge the gap between national security needs and private sector finance. This requires financing, payment infrastructure and risk-management tools that can support procurement at scale and help connect sovereign demand with industrial capacity.”

"Higher defense budgets will translate into real capabilities only if industry and investments receive adequate funding. This is especially true for Poland, which allocates the highest percentage of its GDP to defense among NATO nations, reaching 5%. Citi Handlowy incorporated this focus into its 'Bank for Global Business’ strategy announced last May, making defense one of the bank's priorities for the coming years. The NATO initiative confirms that private capital must play a key role in this process," said Elżbieta Czetwertyńska, President of the Management Board of Citi Handlowy.