"We want all our funds to reflect our organizational values, credibility, and charitable mission."
So says Victoria Papworth, CEO of NatWest Social & Community Capital, a 25-year-old charity funded by the UK bank NatWest that provides loans, occasional grants, and business support to social enterprises, charities, and community businesses that aren't able to access mainstream finance.
Until now, NatWest Social & Community Capital has either invested its funds in the capital markets or held them in cash.
But under a new strategy announced last week, NatWest Social & Community Capital will adopt a "total impact approach" and invest the rest of its funds in ways that create a positive impact, both financial and social.
"We want all our funds to reflect our organizational values, credibility, and charitable mission," Papworth tells Pioneers Post.
NatWest Social & Community Capital will work with fund manager Tribe Impact Capital as a financial advisor to implement the strategy, which will be in place immediately.
The approach is common among US foundations, but it's been slow to gain traction in the UK charity sector, according to S&CC, which says it hopes to drive more charities to follow its example.
The Access Foundation for Social Investment is an example of another social investor taking a
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