The move follows several big spending commitments on defence in Germany.  

Germany has launched a EUR130 billion “Germany Fund” to attract up to EUR130 billion in private investment for high-risk projects in key sectors, including defence, according to 18 December reporting from the Financial Times.  

Anchored in Germany’s state development bank KfW and “seeded” with around EUR30 billion in public money and loan guarantees, the fund will enable an array of investment vehicles and projects to channel private money into defence startups, among other things.  

The launch of this fund follows the appointment of “investment tsar” Martin Blessing by Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz in September. Blessing’s role will be to promote the country as an investment destination to international investors. 

Since May, Merz has set out plans to spend more than EUR1 trillion on renovating Germany’s public infrastructure and armed forces, with around EUR400 billion allocated to the military alone over the coming five years. 

Following this, at the start of this month, Germany’s parliament approved the country’s defence budget for 2026, with over EUR108 billion earmarked for a range of projects, including equipping soldiers with “state-of-the-art” weapons systems and gradually increasing personnel numbers. 

In the same month, Germany approved sweeping procurement projects, including one to develop a new AI-supported reconnaissance network and another to redesign the maritime surveillance radar of the German Navy’s NH-90 helicopters. 

Germany also committed to a EUR35 billion investment in its space infrastructure to bolster its resilience against threats from China and Russia. This will include spending on satellites and ground infrastructure.