Today is a day to celebrate! In the Fall Economic Statement released this morning, the Federal Government announced the creation of a $755 million Social Finance Fund. This is a strong signal towards the growing movement of impact investment in Canada and a bold step towards advancing social innovation.
“We are very optimistic about the announcement today,” says Tapestry’s Social Impact Manager, Ryan Collins-Swartz, “it’s a signal from the top that the social economy is moving towards becoming the common economy.”
In June 2017, the Government created a Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy Co-Creation Steering Group that sought feedback from hundreds of non-profit and charitable stakeholders to create a nationwide social innovation and social finance strategy. The Steering Group published its final report in August 2018: Inclusive innovation: New Ideas and New Partnerships for Stronger Communities.
One of the report’s central recommendations was to create a Social Finance Fund to accelerate the social finance market in Canada and help close the financing gap faced by organizations that are contributing to social and environmental change in their communities.
The Fund, which will make $755 million available over the next ten years, will support charities, non-profits and other social purpose organizations to access new financing and connect them with private investors that want to make impact investments. The Government has also proposed to invest $50 million over two years to create an Investment Readiness Steam, for these organizations to improve their ability to successfully attract investment.
Tapestry has also recognized the need to develop the investment readiness of non-profits, charities and co-ops. With the launch of our Bond Camp we will be supporting Ontario-based organizations to successfully raise community investment in 2019. We have seen the movement of private capital into meaningful, place-based investments and feel confident that this fund will feed the growing local and social investment ecosystem.
“This is a symbolic gesture from the Government, recognizing the reality that the non-profit sector is a very important part of our economy,” says Collins-Swartz. “This fund will make much needed resources available to ensure that social innovators are able to scale, and make Canada a better place to live, work and play.”
The Government has reported that this Social Finance Fund could generate up to $2 billion in economic activity, and help create and maintain as many as 100,000 jobs over the next decade.
In honour of this great news, we are giving the gift of one free investment readiness workshop. Do you know of a project that could benefit from community investment? Email us at info@tapestrycapital.ca.
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