We’re trying to get together a list of financial organisations that can help people with their investments. A description of what is different about these organisations and how money will be used to create an environment where all life thrives would be super useful to others.
This is a short post. I searched high and low for good investments and it’s tricky- in general google searches it is a quagmire- loads of data capture companies out there.
Triodos bank is an obvious place to save and it’s who Better Century banks with but their investments are complicated and difficult if you’re a first time investor.
The people who sparked my interest and I ended up investing with (through an ISA) were abundance investments. I’ve invested in a range of projects (mostly renewable energy for me) getting me 5-12% a year, which is a great return! (though you do need to accept that risk is fairly high). One another thing to mention about abundance- they do a pension… which I think is super cool… throughout your lifetime you could be investing in dozens of world changing innovations … cool.
The other guys which are worthwhile considering are ethex. They have something great projects- some oversees but all social change projects giving a payback of around 5%. They feel more like a crowdfunder site but have a bigger range. I haven’t made an investment with them yet but have been tempted on more than one occasion. The problem is they don’t have the ISA facility.
If you’re worried about how much you can invest- don’t. Abundance start at £5 and Ethex £50.
Might as well put your money where your mouth is!!!
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Interesting insight will have a look in to this.
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Thanks @Tom. Will take a look.
Found this cool 
Kickstarter which is crowdfunding for bamboo straws. Would think this is a very good investment!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wildbamboo/the-straws-100-organic-reusable-bamboo-straws
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Shameless self-promotion: check out util (www.util.co) - we are building a way of measuring impact for all listed companies and funds - this means that we will have a much better idea which funds are actually doing good, and which are just saying that they are doing good to attract more clients. As a somewhat interesting sidenote, there is a lot of talk in the industry about mis-selling ethical products - because there are no standards, kite marks or regulations, anyone can call their fund ethical.
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Hi. Thanks for that. I’m thinking now of using Triodos for my savings instead of just leaving it in my bank. I don’t have much but it would be doing more good there I think
You should also check out Abundance. You can set up an ISA for as little as £5. It sounds like I’m selling their services but honestly I just think what they’re doing is the coolest thing out there!
Just discovered a few more that may be helpful, although don’t have any experience of using these providers. Let me know if you have!
Small company providing finance packages for small scale tech e.g. Biomass boilers - interesting Directors to contact
The Sun Exchange is a marketplace where you can purchase solar cells and have them power businesses and communities in the sunniest locations on earth. You lease your solar cells purchased through The Sun Exchange to hospitals, factories, schools and other end-users, earning you decades of solar powered rental income wherever you are in the world. The Sun Exchange hosts what we call a ‘crowd-sale’ of solar cells. It works a bit like crowd-funding in that the project will only go ahead once all the solar cells have been sold. We arrange the solar equipment leases for you and arrange the revenue collection and distribution systems so you can earn a passive stream of rental income powered by the sun.
Decent sized company which provide private advice on investments
The Finance Innovation Lab incubates the people, ideas and movements building a financial system that serves people and planet. We work with innovators developing new business models, campaigners calling for change in the rules of the game, and mainstream professionals who want to change finance from the inside.|
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