Section x:Luke FletcherChair, ESELA

18 February 2016

Mapping Study on Social Enterprise

Social Business Initiative (SBI):

■ SBI launched in 2011

■ Mapping study commissioned in April 2013

■ Mapping study published in November 2014

■ Legal summary published by ESELA in October 2015

Legal Forms and Legal Statuses

Foundations Associations Co-operatives Companies

Legal status applies to one or more legal forms

Common Barriers to Accessing Markets

■ Restrictions on: types of social purposesability to carry out trading activityability to establish trading subsidiariesability of directors to receive compensationability to compete in the market

Common Barriers to Accessing Finance

■ Restrictions on: interest rates payable amount of debt permittedsecuring property or assets issuing debt securitiesnon-member investment or returnscommunicating with investorsnon-liquid investments

Policy Principles

■ Broad-based social enterprise economySupport entrepreneur choiceFocus on adapting legal forms

■ Legal form agnosticismRespect traditional social economyOpenness to new models and methods

■ Legal aspects of policy development

■ Evaluation and assessment

Ecosystem Design

■ Guidance for entrepreneurs on adapting legal forms

■ Develop model social enterprise constitutions

■ Support development of social enterprise legal formsCo-operatives with a social purposeNot for profit social enterprisesShare companies in which social purpose is primary

■ Support development of social enterprise legal statuses Build on underlying legal forms

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Please visit www.esela.eu and contact us at info@esela.edu to stay informed