This new investment opportunity, which is available until 9th February, is in the form of a five year loan to ART Business Loans, through peer to peer business lender ThinCats and underwritten by ART and Birmingham City Council. ART will use the money to offer loans of between £10,000 and £150,000 to start up and existing businesses in Birmingham unable to access any or all of the finance they need from a bank.

Investments will qualify for Community Investment Tax Relief, which reduces investors’ tax bills by 5% of the loan value per annum over five years. This equates to a 6.25% return for standard rate Income Tax payers, 8.3% for those paying 40% tax and 9.1% for higher rate tax payers. The Tax relief also applies to businesses which get Corporation Tax relief, providing an income equivalent to 5.8%.

Steve Walker, Chief Executive of ART, explains: “This kind on investment is considered a ‘social investment’, because the return is not only financial in the form of tax relief, but also social in the form of a boost to the local economy which ultimately affects the employment opportunities, health and wellbeing of everyone who lives or works in Birmingham.”