Banks
SFF benefits from donated and low-cost funding from the Irish banks
Social Lending Organisations
Clann Credo and Community Finance Ireland (CFI) – Social Lending Organisations (SLOs)
Department of Finance
Department of Finance
European Investment Fund
SFF benefits from guarantees funded by the European Union under InvestEU and the Programme for Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI).
Programme for Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI)
The EaSI Programme supports increased access to financing for social enterprises that meet certain eligibility criteria. The guarantee covers loans up to a maximum of €500,000. For information on the application process, please visit the websites of Clann Credo https://www.clanncredo.ie/ and Community Finance Ireland https://communityfinanceireland.com/. The European Commission has selected the EIF to implement the EaSI Guarantee.
For more information on the EaSI Programme, please visit the websites: European Commission, and EIF.
Clann Credo and Community Finance Ireland (CFI) – Social Lending Organisations (SLOs)
Mission Statement
Our mission is threefold: Firstly, generate a strong social impact by funding, through our lending partners, creditworthy projects with loan finance; Secondly, to realise the full potential of social finance in Ireland; Finally, working collaboratively, to undertake research and deliver initiatives which promote social good, with the Irish Government and the Irish Banking Industry as our sponsors.
Vision. SFF is acknowledged as a leader in establishing the concept of social finance in Ireland
Values. Integrity, Innovation, Delivery, Collaboration.
Foundation Structure
Lending Information
2024 Annual Report
You can download a PDF of the 2024 Annual report on the The Media / Publications page.
Loan Portfolio in 2024 by Geography
Measurement of the social impact of the projects which the Foundation supports is very difficult. However, metrics have been generated and are shown in the tables below. Every effort is made to enhance this information and make it as relevant as possible.
The Foundation strives to achieve a balanced distribution of funds throughout the State and the Chart illustrates this is being broadly achieved.
Connaught €12.0m
Dublin €5.7m
Leinster €13.7m
Munster €23.1m
Ulster €4.4m
SPORT €26.3m
SOCIAL ENTERPRISES €7.0m
COMMUNITY & VOLUNTARY GROUPS €14.5m
SOCIAL CARE HOUSING €3.1m
ARTS, HERITAGE €1.6m
RELIGIOUS €3.7m
COMMUNITY AND FAMILY RESOURCE CENTRE €2.7m
Loan Portfolio at December 2024 by Sector
The nature of the Foundation’s lending is shown below. The Foundation is very conscious of its obligation to ensure that monies are utilised in areas where they will have a high social impact. The breakdown illustrates that this is being achieved.
SPORT
€26.3m
SOCIAL ENTERPRISES
€7.0m
COMMUNITY & VOLUNTARY GROUPS
€14.5m
SOCIAL CARE HOUSING
€3.1m
ARTS, HERITAGE
€1.6m
RELIGIOUS
€3.7m
COMMUNITY AND FAMILY RESOURCE CENTRE
€2.7m
Impact of Total SFF Lending
Up to December 2024
SFF was established to address the difficulty Community & Voluntary Groups and Social Enterprises faced in accessing loan finance, which hindered their ability to fund projects and achieve community ambitions. SFF’s social impact model allocates capital to specific sectors and wellbeing metrics to generate specific positive outcomes and Social Return on Investment. The organisation aims to align its lending with UN Sustainable Development Goals and Irish Government Policy.
Chronology & Highlights
2007
Minister for Finance publicly launches Social Finance Foundation.
Irish banks provide €25m to Foundation.
2009
April
SFF signs Loan Agreement with 12 Irish banks for additional funding of €72m.
2012
September
Microfinance Ireland launched by Minister for Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation Mr. Richard Bruton TD.
2015
November
Launch of pilot Personal Microcredit Scheme with 30 credit unions.
2018
April
Completion of Research Report on the Social Enterprise sector in Ireland in collaboration with Department of Rural and Community Development.
November
Publication of Report “Interest Rate Restrictions on Credit for Low-income Borrowers”.
December
€100m lent to 1,000 organisations.
2019
May
Foundation signs the EaSI Loan Guarantee Scheme with EIF.
December
Foundation signs Loan Agreement with Irish Banks for additional €44m of funding.
2020
July
Social Enterprise Republic of Ireland (SERI) established with the support of the Foundation.
2022
July
Council of Europe Development Bank & Social Finance Foundation partner to support community projects in Ireland with a €20m Loan.
September
SFF reached new milestone. Loan Book exceeds €50m in outstanding balances for first time.
2023
March
SFF reaches €200 million lent to 2000 organisations.
July
SFF won the 2023 European Association of Long-Term Investors award for Social Impact.
2024
January
Irish banks provide further interest rate concessions to lower the cost of capital for the social finance sector.
Garrett O’Donohoe attended the InvestEU conference in Brussels, where the EU Commission recognized Ireland’s unique model for social finance.
June
With the support of the CEB, the InvestEU’s Advisory Hub agreed to fund the development of a Social Impact measurement framework, for the social finance sector in Ireland.
December
SFF and Social Enterprise Republic of Ireland (SERI) established a partnership to enhance support for social enterprises in Ireland.
growth in
cumulative
drawdowns
