Shared Interest Society

How is it social?

The Shared Interest Society is a co-operative that aims to help fair trade producers and buyers through fair lending terms. Shared Interest Foundation is the sister charity to the society. Its mission is to support disadvantaged producers, mainly in the least developed countries. The foundation helps fair trade producers by providing them with financial and business training, and by assisting them in improving their capacity and performance. The company is a member of the International Fair Trade Association (IFAT) and of the Fairtrade Labelling Organisation (FLO).

What is its business model?

The Shared Interest Society is a fair trade lending co-operative. It has over 8,400 members in the UK, who invest in Shared Interest in order to help finance fair trade. The company provides credit and loans to more than 450 producers from developing countries in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, and buyers from Europe and North America. Shared Interest won the 2007 Judges' Special Award in the CIPFA/PWC Public Reporting and Accountability Award, and was highly commended in the 2006 Association of Chartered Certified Accountants' UK Awards for Sustainability Reporting.

Its history

The Shared Interest Society was co-founded in 1990 by Mark Hayes, an investment banker, and Traidcraft founder Richard Adams. The company’s initial funding (£100,000) came mainly from “Traidcraft” and Oikocredit, a Dutch fair trade co-operative. Shared Interest merged with the Scottish Churches Action for World Development Investment Association Limited (SIAL), an Oikocredit Support Association, which provided the first 200 members and £300,000 of capital. Hayes was the managing director from 1990-1999. In 2003 the Shared Interest Foundation was established. In 2006, the society opened its first regional offices in Nairobi, Kenya and San Jose, Costa Rica.

More information