Fair4All Finance launches to increase access to fair financial products and services

Fair4All Finance is delighted to announce that Richard Collier-Keywood has been appointed as the organisation’s Founding Chair. Richard will lead the organisation’s development as it grows to take on the funding from dormant bank accounts aimed at tackling financial exclusion.

Fair4All Finance has been established in response to the government’s commitment to allocate this funding to financial inclusion initiatives*. The organisation will support the financial wellbeing of the most vulnerable groups in our society by increasing access to fair, affordable and appropriate financial products and services.Richard has been appointed by an independent panel, chaired by Sir Leigh Lewis, for an initial four year term.

We are grateful to be in a position to build on the great work that has taken place over the last year to set the direction of the funding, which was led by the Department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and the National Lottery Community Fund, in close partnership with HM Treasury, the Cabinet Office, the Department for Work & Pensions and the FCA. We are grateful for the support of this group and look forward to working in close partnership with them.

Our challenge and the opportunity is to deploy the dormant assets money to ensure that affordable credit, and other financial products and services, serve the needs of vulnerable people at scale.

Richard Collier-Keywood, Founding Chair of Fair4All Finance, said:

“I am delighted to have been appointed as the Founding Chair of Fair4All Finance. 

“As an organisation, we are currently a start-up and we have a lot of work to do, not least to appoint a Board, leadership team and put together a plan designed to have the greatest possible impact on financial exclusion.

“A lot of good work has been done already but there is still a huge amount to do to ensure that the most vulnerable people in our society have access to fair and affordable financial products and services. We are grateful for the work of the financial inclusion and financial services sectors in particular, and we want to work in close partnership with those sectors and other interested parties going forward.”

Mims Davies, Minister for Sport and Civil Society, said:

“We are absolutely committed to improving lives and opportunities up and down the country, and creating a fairer society.

“The dormant assets scheme demonstrates just one of the ways in which we are delivering this. Since 2011 the government has worked with banks and building societies to unlock half a billion pounds for good causes.

“The launch of Fair4All Finance is a key milestone in tackling financial exclusion and distributing funds to help those that need it the most. I am delighted that Richard has been appointed as Founding Chair, and look forward to working closely with him to make the organisation a great success.”

Dawn Austwick, CEO of the National Lottery Community Fund, said:

“Congratulations to Richard Collier-Keywood on being appointed the Founding Chair of Fair4All Finance. We look forward to working with Richard and his team as they build on the preparatory work of the last year, which included many contributions from people living with the daily effects of facing barriers to financial inclusion. Their stories helped to identify some of the challenges that Fair4All Finance will address with funding from Dormant Assets. We wish him and his team well as they start up Fair4All Finance and embark on their ambition to improve access to fair and affordable financial products and services for all.”

Please contact Leonie on Leonie@fair4allfinance.org.uk for all media enquiries.

Civil Society Strategy, August 2018, p. 100.

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