Social Investment Scotland secures £3.5m from the British Business Bank, to support Scotland’s small-business community
- By editor
- Jul 30
- 2 min read
The British Business Bank has allocated £3.5m to Edinburgh-based Social Investment Scotland (SIS) to support underserved, smaller businesses across several areas within Scotland, with loans ranging from £25,001 to £125,000.
SIS was established in 2000 to provide a new finance model for Scotland’s charities and social enterprises. It offers debt finance and support to underserved charities, social enterprises and smaller businesses that may find it difficult to access finance from mainstream lenders. In the last 25 years it has invested £167m in 570 social enterprises.
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.
The Community ENABLE Funding programme works by increasing the availability of
funding to social-impact small-business lenders, including CDFIs, who in turn can
provide that funding to the smaller businesses they serve in local communities.
Funding from the Community ENABLE Funding programme will be deployed by SIS
across key local authorities for an initial pilot phase including Glasgow; Argyll and Bute; West Dunbartonshire; North Ayrshire; South Ayrshire; East Ayrshire; and Inverclyde.
Reinald de Monchy, chief banking officer at the British Business Bank, said: “Expanding the Community ENABLE Funding programme across the UK’s nations and regions is central to our mission, so we are delighted to welcome SIS as the programme’s eighth accredited lender.
“SIS has a strong and trusted track record, and we are confident that its local insight will help break down barriers to finance for a wider pool of entrepreneurs, supporting job creation and enabling them to realise their full potential.”
Alastair Davis, SIS chief executive, added: “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.
“We’re proud to be working with the British Business Bank and a strong network of
referral partners to make sure this funding reaches the businesses and communities
who will benefit most.”
The British Business Bank’s Community ENABLE Funding programme will be rolled out in two phases. In this first phase, the Department for Business and Trade will provide 100 per cent of the programme’s funding through the British Business Bank, which will enable CDFIs to make more finance available to smaller businesses.
In the second phase, the bank will source additional funding from private-sector investors, leveraging the government-backed funding to increase the amount of wholesale finance available under the programme.
Pictured: Reinald de Monchy, chief banking officer at the British Business Bank
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