Shareholders

The Oversight Trust has invested £425 million in “A” shares of Better Society Capital. The four major UK banks have also invested £200 million in “B” shares of Better Society Capital.

The Oversight Trust and banks can vote at shareholder meetings with votes in proportion to their shareholding. However, the banks have each agreed to cap their voting rights at 5% of the overall voting rights, meaning that the Oversight Trust is entitled to 80% of the total voting rights.

The Oversight Trust – Assets for the Common Good

The dormant accounts allocated to England are used to fund four organisations - Better Society Capital, Access - The Foundation for Social Investment, Youth Futures Foundation and Fair4All Finance. The Oversight Trust has the responsibility for overseeing their governance and ensuring their strategies are in adherence with their Object. The Oversight Trust is not involved in the day-to-day operations of the companies it oversees (including investment decisions). Each company has its own Board of directors.

The Board of the Oversight Trust comprises a balance of individuals with skills relevant to the operations of the four organisations it oversees and includes representatives of Government and The National Lottery Community Fund.

The Articles of the Oversight Trust limit the powers of the Government and The National Lottery Community Fund representatives on the Board and the company is classified (by the Office of National Statistics) as being independent of government.

Every four years the Oversight Trust commissions an independent review of the effectiveness of each Operating Company in advancing its objects. The Independent Review of Better Society Capital (previously Big Society Capital) was published in July 2020.