Social Finance Association has become an associate member of FEBEA

Social Finance Association (SFA), a non-governmental organization at the core of the establishment of AFIN, has become a member of the European Federation of Ethical and Alternative Banks and Financiers (FEBEA).

Social Finance Association is an apolitical non-governmental organization, independent and without a patrimonial goal, whose mission is to create, together with AFIN, the perfect framework for the growth of social enterprises from Romania. Through the establishment of the two entities was created an integrated system for specialized assistance for the field of social economy, which will create the premises for the improvement of the access to financing and for consolidating the activities of social entrepreneurs.

Through the activities developed, SFA will complete the financial pillar represented by AFIN. The main purpose is to provide financial education for social enterprises and legal entities that mainly develop projects with social and environmental impact. 

This NGO was created to support social enterprises that will take loans from AFIN, offering them consultancy, mentoring and access to markets for business development. In the long run, the NGO aims to provide know-how and specialized assistance, as well as to co-finance social projects or even provide grants.

"Being accepted as an associate member of FEBEA honors us and represents a confirmation of the role SFA will play in consolidating and developing the social economy sector in Romania. We are still at the very beginning, but together with our partners, we are convinced that we can further develop the sector. We are aware of the innovative, pioneering role of the market, but we have the expertise of other institutions that have already developed solid tools to support social enterprises in Europe. In the long run, we want to become one of the most important actors promoting financial education, as well as social and ethical financing in Romania ", says Bogdan Merfea, founding member of SFA.

About FEBEA

The European Federation of Ethical and Alternative Banks and Financiers (FEBEA) was established in Brussels in 2001 and brings together 30 European financial institutions who share the mission to develop financing instruments that are ethical and with social impact. Together, these innovative and pioneering institutions promote the importance and the urgency of developing ethical and solidary financial models in the European political and economic space.