The launch of Ventures is the culmination of many months of research and review, to understand better what role SIS could and should play in the support and development of mission driven business in Scotland. These are businesses that seek to combine more traditional business objectives with the creation of social impact at scale.
SIS Ventures is part of the wider SIS family and will be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Under a separate and newly formed board, the first task of this new organisation will be to raise its first fund- the Impact First Fund. This fund will raise new capital, from individual investors using tax reliefs, to support both social enterprises (like charities and community interest companies) and mission driven organisations. The latter will be expected to lock in their social mission in return for investment, underlining the importance of purpose to the very foundation of their businesses.
SIS have played a pivotal role in the growth and development of Scotland’s social enterprises over the past 17 years and have now supported over 300 organisations with £61m of investment from a range of funding programmes. This will continue to be their primary focus- there will be no change to the eligibility criteria for existing funds. But SIS know that the next generation of entrepreneurs want to do things differently, and need investment and support that is aligned with their ambitions. SIS Ventures will change that.
Read on for more information about this exciting new development, as well as the first in a new series of case studies highlighting the ripple effect of social enterprises supported by SIS in communities across Scotland.
More information is available on the SIS Ventures website.
