Shared Interest Loan
Loan
Fair trade lender in South Africa
Shared Interest was launched in 1994—the year Nelson Mandela was elected president—to provide a vehicle through which international investors could participate in the equitable development of the new South Africa. Its mission is to mobilize the resources for South Africa's economically disenfranchised communities to sustain themselves and build an equitable nation.
Shared Interest guarantees South African bank loans to low-income communities and their own financial institutions to create businesses, jobs and affordable homes and services. It works through its partner organization, Thembani, to build the human capital and self-sufficiency of these community development financial institutions.
Shared Interest also collaborates with other organizations to advance models and policies that recognize women as primary drivers of development and that increase the resources and power of South Africa's most marginalized communities. It builds partnerships with individuals and institutions in the U.S. that enable them to invest in South Africa's future. Shared Interest and Thembani are in the process of expanding their work into additional countries in Southern Africa.
Summary
More than 400 individuals and institutions in the U.S. have lent upwards of $12 million dollars.
- All investors requesting repayment have been repaid with their interest.
- No investor has lost interest or principal as a result of a loan to Shared Interest.
Loans to back Shared Interest’s guarantees begin at $3,000, and mature at least three years after they are received.
The money is invested and remains in a designated Shared Interest account in the United States. The securities in the account serve as collateral for South African bank loans to low-income borrowers, their institutions and communities. At the same time, the securities earn interest. Twice a year, lenders receive interest payments from their loans to Shared Interest. They are invited to donate a portion of this interest back to the organization to help cover the costs of providing technical assistance and managing risk in South Africa.
