The Social Value and Solidarity Foundation (SVS Fund) is the first social finance wholesale fund established in Korea as part of the Korean government's Social Finance Promotion Strategy (dated 8 February 2018). The Foundation aims to contribute to the development of the social finance ecosystem by financing individual social economy enterprises through various social finance intermediaries.

Add social value to finance

Most of the social economy enterprises lack access to financing, despite their contribution to inclusive social and economic development. The SVS Fund aims to enhance the financial accessibility of social economy enterprises by providing tailored financing such as patient capital for their stable development and scaling up. It also mobilizes funds with other partner institutions to invest in impact projects that require large-scale financing such as in the renewable energy and social housing sectors.
The Foundation distributes funds through various social finance intermediaries based in different regions of Korea to create a social finance ecosystem.
The primary purpose of the SVS Fund is to make finance ‘social,’ not to maximize profits. It adds social value to finance, which is what ‘finance’ is meant to be in the very first place.
 

Vision & Mission

Mission

• Establishment of a financial foundation for promoting the Korean social economy and disseminating social values
• Research on enhancing and disseminating social values
• Incubation of social economy organizations
• Contribute to social development through financial support for social economy organizations

Principles of fund management

Establishment of the fund through a public-private partnership in which civil society leads and the government supports initiatives
 

Main Projects

As the first social finance wholesale fund established in Korea, the SVS Fund implements various financial projects for social economy enterprises in cooperation with social finance intermediaries.

1. Provide patience capital to social economy organizations
Provide patient capital to the social economy (as a subordinated and secondary role) with differentiated pricing based on social value

• Collaboration with the Korea Growth Fund and Korea Venture Investment to establish a senior subordinated structure
• Serve in a secondary role when funds terminate
• Provide financing to existing/new social finance intermediaries

2. Support high social impact projects
Structure a finance system based on the convergence of mutual credits, local government and civil society to realize social impact projects.

• Social Impact Bonds (SIBs)
• Social housing and community ownership
• Renewable energy
• Specialized projects by region and industry
• Innovative technology

3. Foster social finance intermediary organizations and market infrastructures
Respond to increasing social finance demands according to the growth of the social economy through fostering local intermediaries (retail finance).

• Foster capable social finance institutions
• Promote social finance markets through quantification of social value