Edinburgh-based Social Investment Scotland (SIS) has secured £3.5m from the British Business Bank to support underserved smaller businesses across Scotland, with loans ranging from £25,001 to £125,000.
SIS offers debt finance and support to underserved charities, social enterprises and smaller businesses that may find it difficult to access finance from mainstream lenders.
SIS is the eighth Community Development Finance Institution (CDFI) lender accredited by the British Business Bank under its Community ENABLE Funding programme, and the first with a dedicated focus on Scotland.
CDFIs typically have strong, local knowledge of the businesses they support and the communities they reside in. As such, they are well placed to help remove barriers to accessing finance experienced by businesses.
One of the key objectives of the programme is to help develop the CDFI sector across the UK. The Bank says it will support up to £150m of lending over its first two years.
SIS is an established CDFI, with more than 25 years’ experience delivering responsible, impact-led lending to social enterprises and charities across Scotland.
SIS recently led the delivery of The Community Investment Enterprise Fund, bringing Lloyds Bank, Better Society Capital, Triodos and four CDFIs together as a fund manager to invest £72m into 750 businesses across England and Wales.
Funding from the programme will be deployed by SIS across local authorities for an initial pilot phase including Glasgow, Argyll and Bute, West Dunbartonshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire, East Ayrshire and Inverclyde.
“We promised Scotland would be next when we launched the Community Investment Enterprise Fund to help CDFIs support small businesses in England and Wales. With that fund now fully deployed, this accreditation brings that ambition closer to home,” says Alastair Davis, CEO of Social Investment Scotland.
“Through the Community ENABLE Funding programme, we can reach small businesses across communities in Scotland that are often underserved by mainstream lending, giving them the capital they need to grow, create jobs and build resilience in their local economies.”
