Euclid is to hold a meeting on the formation of a European Bank for Social Investments (EBSI) in April.

The EBSI has been proposed as a wholesale lender to other social finance institutions.

Chief executive of Social Investment Business Jonathan Lewis and Ronald Cohen, chair of the Commission on Unclaimed Assets will be attending the event, along with social finance leaders from across Europe.

Filippo Addarii, executive director of the Euclid Network said:

“The European Union is at the mid-point in its budget cycle.

“We need to present this idea to them now, in plenty of time to get it into the next cycle of EU funding.”

Euclid is aiming for a feasibility study to be completed by early 2010. A move towards such a system came after Addarii gained backing from French and German social institutions, including the French bank Credit Cooperatif.

“We don't yet know whether it would be a bank with public funding from the European Union, a fund with cash from governments, individuals and institutions or a mixture of the two,” said Addarii. "We need to look at which model will work best.”