John Lennon imagined a peaceful world in the classic song “Imagine”. So why I am about to tell you about a trend sweeping business? Aren’t business and world peace (or other do-good pursuits) ill at ease?
Not necessarily.
Here is an intriguing idea. For-profit businesses willingly decide to make donations to non-profits: by giving company stock.
Richard Bernstein is the CEO of a London-based venture capital fund called Eurovestech. Eurovestech is listed on the London Stock Exchange. It provides start-up capital in technology-based businesses.
But here’s the cool part: Eurovestech also issues new company shares in batches of 100,000 and gives them to charitable organizations. From Eurovestech’s point of view, it costs a fraction of giving the same amount in cash. For the recipient, it’s a gift that has the potential of large up-side growth. Recipients can sell the stock immediately to raise funds or hold on and hope that the stock rises in value.
According to Ode magazine, Bernstein’s small company has donated 8.2 million shares to more than 70 charitable and non-profit organizations. This amounts to a stock market value of almost $3 million.
Says Bernstein in the Ode article by Bruno Giussani: “I’m ready to go to see any CEO in any company anywhere in Europe to explain how it works and show how simply it can be done from the company’s point-of-view.” He continues by saying, “I want to get to the point where it’s embarrassing for a company not to be ’sharing alike’”.
Let’s hope this movement catches on here, across the pond. What a great way to share profits with organizations that work hard to make the world a better place.
Imagine that!
September 12th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
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September 25th, 2008 at 9:34 am
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