About the investment

Why does the council want to raise money from the public?

This is a question for the council to answer based our your own strategy. Typically getting resident engagement in net zero delivery plans is a priority, as well as giving people more ownership of what happens in their community.

How does the council pay the interest payments?

Councils borrow money to fund their plans from a variety of sources, including the Public Works Loan Board - which lends billions of pounds a year to councils to fund capital projects. Before councils can proceed with a project they must ensure that they can afford the repayments on the borrowing that is necessary to fund it. Our investments are accounted for in the same way - so the council will pay the interest costs in the same way that they would for borrowing from any other sources.

How can the council afford to borrow more money for green projects?

This investment isn’t used to allow councils to borrow more money than they can afford. It is simply an alternative way for them to fund their existing plans, which are fully budgeted for as part of their overall financial plans. So this investment doesn’t fund additional projects, it is simply an alternative source of borrowing for councils.

Is this investment expensive for the council?

No. The investment interest rate is set on the day of launch, and it is done to ensure that the cost to the council does not exceed the cost they would pay if they were to borrow from the Public Works Loan Board on that same day. In fact, there is often a small saving to the council of borrowing the money this way versus the costs from the Public Works Loan Board.

Who are Abundance Investment?

Abundance are the regulated investment platform who are managing this investment. They have been operating for over a decade, and have over 8,000 investors. They provide the website for you to set up and account, manage your investment, receive your returns and get updates from the council.

Have other councils raised money like this?

Yes. Abundance has worked with over 15 councils, raising over £15m to date. More and more councils are looking to use this way of raising money to complement their other sources of borrowing. You can see who else has raised money here: https://www.abundanceinvestment.com/councils

****It is also worth remembering that councils used to regularly issue investments and bonds to fund infrastructure projects. The practice was common for hundreds of years, before falling out of favour after the second world war. Using a digital platform makes it possible to bring this idea back in a way that suits the 21st century. You can get some information on that here: https://medium.abundanceinvestment.com/the-power-of-local-investment-a-new-take-on-an-old-idea-3792f5dc1083