Social Investment Scotland (SIS) has said that the past year has been a record one for the loan provider, with £23m of new or renewed investment secured.
SIS said that over the past year SIS has secured £23m in investment commitments from the Royal Bank of Scotland, Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale Bank, the Scottish Government, Big Society Capital, Triodos Bank and Asda.
It also said that it had invested more than ever before, with £7.5m in funding being awarded to 45 social enterprises, charities and community organisations. Since it started in 2001, SIS has made investments totalling £48.9m.
Nick Kuenssberg, chairman of Social Investment Scotland, said: “While we have succeeded in securing significant funding from more traditional investment sources, we have also focused on trying to unlock other sources of capital to help to fuel the growth of Scotland’s third sector. That’s one reason why we recently launched SIS Community Capital - Scotland’s first social investment fund for individual investors, backed by social investment tax relief.
“By tapping into the demand from high net worth individuals to invest their money in social causes, we can access a potentially significant additional pool of capital, which will help us to provide affordable loans to social enterprises and charities.”
SIS said that its “highlights” this year include £2m of investments since April 2014 from its core lending capital, more than any other year since its formation. In May 2014 it also launched the new Social Growth Fund, of which £16m came from the Scottish government and Big Society Capital - £4m of which has already been committed to third sector organisations in Scotland.
Triodos, the Dutch ethical bank, has made a commitment to SIS of up to £5m over the next five years “to support investment activity”. Also in December 2014, SIS teamed up with Asda to launch Asda Community Capital – “a fund for innovative social enterprises and community projects created from the Scottish Government’s single use carrier bag levy”. In the first six months £156,000 has been awarded to five community based social enterprises across Scotland.
Alastair Davis, chief executive of Social Investment Scotland, said: “Over the past year we have seen a step change in Scotland’s social investment market with marked increases on both the supply and demand sides. More capital is being injected into Scotland’s third sector than before and greater numbers of social enterprises and community organisations are looking at investment to help fund growth. With this significant increase in funds under management, SIS is in a strong position to continue connecting capital with more communities across Scotland.”
