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Investment information for members

Oikocredit’s cooperative members comprise hundreds of organisations wanting to invest their money for good. On this page, representatives of Oikocredit’s members can find essential information about investing. Individual investors can find more information about investing on the websites of their countries.

Make impact with your organisation’s money 

Oikocredit is a social impact investor and worldwide cooperative with over four decades of experience in promoting sustainable development through investments.

With the funds entrusted to us by our members and investors, we offer loans and equity investments as well as non-financial support, such as capacity building, to the organisations we fund. With our support, they work to increase opportunities for low-income people in the Global South. 

Our guiding principle is empowering low-income people to create sustainable futures for themselves, their families and their communities. 

From funding women entrepreneurs to creating access to renewable energy, Oikocredit’s investments and support target access to resilience-building resources and improved livelihoods for low-income people. 

Inform yourself about the investment 

Investments in Oikocredit are made in the form of non-voting equity instruments governed by Dutch law called participations. An investment is only suitable for organisations that clearly understand the risks. There is the possibility that you have to wait a long time to get any money back and that you will get back no money or less money than your original investment in Oikocredit. 

The following documents and information contain the relevant terms and conditions for an investment in Oikocredit: 

  • The participation terms describe in detail how an investment in Oikocredit will be handled and what rights and obligations investors in Oikocredit have. Oikocredit may amend the participation terms from time to time at its own discretion. 

  • The prospectus describes, amongst others, the key risks of investing in Oikocredit. 

  • The Articles of Association contain, amongst other provisions, the core terms of an investment in Oikocredit. They also contain the terms of being a member of the cooperative. The articles may be amended by Oikocredit with the agreement of its members in a General Meeting. 

Please note that if any of the following questions and answers should differ from the information provided in the aforementioned documents, the documents supersede.

Frequently asked questions

How to invest

  • Who can become a member of Oikocredit?

    Membership is open to the following types of organisations: 

    • Churches and church-related organisations 

    • Support associations, which are independent organisations founded to support our purpose, mission and vision and that operate under the Oikocredit brand to support our work 

    • Our partners who have met their loan obligations for at least five years can be invited to become a member of Oikocredit 

    • Other organisations that are aligned with our mission and meet specific conditions can be invited to become a member by Oikocredit’s Supervisory Board 

    If you wish to become a member of the Oikocredit cooperative, please fill in this contact form. We will then reach out to you and explore the opportunities for your organisation to become a member. Admission as a member is subject to, amongst other things, a successful due diligence check and approval by Oikocredit’s Managing Board. 

    If you want to invest in Oikocredit without becoming a member of the Oikocredit cooperative, please select your country here.

  • What’s the process for investing in Oikocredit as a member for the first time?

    Member organisations can invest in Oikocredit once they have been approved as members of the cooperative by Oikocredit’s Managing Board (see question ‘Who can become a member of Oikocredit?’). Before taking steps to invest in Oikocredit, members should read the prospectus, the participation terms and the articles of association.  

    The process for investing in Oikocredit as a member is: 

    • Have a meeting online or in person with one of our Investor Relations Officers. Please contact us at oi.support@oikocredit.org. 

    • Submit a completed subscription form for members. 

    • Provide the information required as part of our eligibility and identity checks. These include:  

      • Proof of existence, e.g. articles of incorporation, an (online) registry extract or chamber of commerce extract 

      • If applicable: articles of association/bylaws 

      • If applicable: a proof of address 

      • An ultimate beneficiary owner declaration form 

      • A signatory form  

      • A signed membership agreement 

    • When your application is positively reviewed and the Managing Board approved your request for membership, you will receive an email notification including your investment number and contact number. In this notification we will also share our bank details. 

    • Transfer the amount you wish to invest to Oikocredit’s bank account with your investment number (starting with I-) or contact number (six digits) in the reference field. 

    • When your investment is approved: receive participations in Oikocredit to the value of your investment and the mutually signed membership agreement.  

    Oikocredit assesses whether to honour issuance requests on a monthly basis and, following a positive assessment, processes issuance requests on a monthly basis. For information about the price at which participations are issued, see question ‘At which price can I buy or sell participations?’ The issuance and redemption of participations is always at Oikocredit’s discretion. For more information on issuance and redemptions, please read our participation terms (Annex 2).

Risks and implications

  • Is our investment safe?

    Since Oikocredit began in 1975, no investor in Oikocredit has lost any of their invested capital. However, past performance is not a guarantee of future results. 

    Oikocredit is not a bank and an investment in Oikocredit cannot be compared to placing money into a savings account. By investing in Oikocredit participations, you invest in the equity of the organisation which is associated with considerable risks. See more under the questions ‘What are the risks of investing in Oikocredit?’ and ‘When I invest in Oikocredit, what do I support?’ 

    In the event of a bankruptcy, your investment is not protected by any deposit guarantee scheme or investor compensation scheme in any country. However, Oikocredit works hard to minimise the potential risks for the organisation, our partners, and our investors. See more under the question ‘What does Oikocredit do to minimise risks?’ 

    In the unlikely event of Oikocredit becoming insolvent or facing dissolution, any claim in connection with redemption of a participation will be a ‘subordinated claim’. This means that in the event of Oikocredit’s bankruptcy, investors holding participations are paid out last, after all creditors (read more about this in Annex 3 of the participation terms).

  • What are the risks of investing in Oikocredit?

    An investment in participations is an investment in the equity of Oikocredit and is fundamentally associated with considerable risks. There is the possibility that you have to wait a long time to get any money back and that you will get back less money than you invested. The risks can even lead to the complete loss of the invested capital. It is therefore important that your organisation is able to bear the risks that come with investing in equity. 

    There are various other risks and factors including financial, non-financial and strategic risks which are described in chapter 1 of the prospectus. It is essential for investors to read these documents. Read more on the prospectus page. 

    Oikocredit protects the capital of the investors by setting aside provisions for expected losses and careful business decisions, but a residual risk can never be completely ruled out. See also the question ‘What does Oikocredit do to minimise risks?’

    Key risks include but are not limited to: 

    • The dividend may vary and is not guaranteed. 

    • The value of the participations can drop below the invested amount. 

    • Investors are not always able to immediately liquidate their investment in participations, as they depend on the decision of Oikocredit to repurchase participations.

  • What does Oikocredit do to minimise risks?

    Oikocredit has a comprehensive risk management framework in place to manage the different financial, non-financial and strategic risks inherent to its activities and operations. You can learn more about this in our annual reports and prospectus. 

    Examples of how Oikocredit aims to minimise different risks: 

    • We mitigate several risks by spreading our investments across multiple countries and multiple sectors as well as hundreds of partners. We also monitor exposure per country, sector or partner. 

    • Credit risks are mitigated through different measures including Oikocredit's own loan loss provisions. 

    • Oikocredit also has a thorough process for screening loans and assessing risks with the support of its local staff in its regional and country offices. 

    • Foreign currency risks are mitigated through external hedging. 

    • Liquidity risks are mitigated by keeping a liquidity buffer. 

    See also the question ‘What are the risks of investing in Oikocredit?’

Costs and dividends

  • How much does it cost to invest in Oikocredit?

    There are no costs for buying, holding or selling participations in Oikocredit. While we have no plans to impose fees, they’re allowed in principle. If any fees should ever be introduced, we would inform you beforehand.

  • What is the minimum opening investment?

    To invest in Oikocredit for the first time, you need to invest a minimum of€ 200, CAD 200, CHF 250, 150 GBP, USD 200 or SEK 2000 (the nominal value of one participation). If at the time of your first investment the net asset value per participation is lower than the nominal value, you will still need to invest a minimum of € 200, CAD 200, CHF 250, 150 GBP, USD 200 or SEK 2000. This may lead you to purchasing more than one participation. 

    Additional investments can be made for amounts lower than the nominal value, in which case you will receive fractions of participations. 

    Members in the category ‘other organisations’ (see ‘Who are our members?’) are required to invest a minimum of 250 participations. 

    Read more in question ‘At which price can I buy or sell participations?’

  • What is the minimum required number of participations that a member organisation needs to hold?

    Members are required to hold at least one participation.  

    Members in the category ‘other organisations’ (see ‘Who are our members?’) are required to hold a minimum of 250 participations.

  • At which price can we buy or sell participations?

    The price at which you can buy further participations from Oikocredit, or at which you can sell them, is the net asset value (NAV) per participation or the nominal value, whichever is lower. 

    What is the nominal value and the net asset value? 

    • The nominal value (€ 200, CAD 200, CHF 250, 150 GBP, USD 200 or SEK 2000) is the maximum price of a participation. The nominal value of each participation is set out in Oikocredit's articles of association and in the participation terms. 

    • The net asset value per participation describes the value of a participation as at the last calendar day of the month. Oikocredit determines this value every month based on a calculation explained in Annex 1 of the participation terms. The net asset value is published here. 

    What does this mean in practice? 

    • If the net asset value per euro participation is higher than € 200, which is the nominal value in Oikocredit’s benchmark currency, issuance and redemption will take place a€ 200, CAD 200, CHF 250, 150 GBP, USD 200 or SEK 2000 only, not at the higher value. 

    • If the net asset value per euro participation is lower than € 200, and as long as Oikocredit hasn’t paused the issuance and redemption of participations, issuance and redemption will take place at the lower euro, British pound sterling, Canadian dollar, Swedish krona, Swiss francs, or United States dollar value only. 

    While Oikocredit has never redeemed investors at a price lower than the nominal value, there is a risk of receiving back less than or none of the money you invested. In addition, there is the possibility that you have to wait a long time to get any money back. 

    See also the question ‘What are the risks of investing in Oikocredit?’ and ‘What does Oikocredit do to minimise risks?’

  • What financial return can we expect from our investment?

    Oikocredit’s main goal is to create social impact for low-income people in the Global South. We also strive to provide members and investors a fair return on their investment. 

    The Annual General Meeting of Oikocredit’s cooperative members decides on dividend payments each year and Oikocredit distributes dividends accordingly.  

    Dividends can vary and are not certain. For a single year, 2% is the maximum dividend amount Oikocredit has ever paid. In past years, dividend levels have included 0%, 0.5% and 1%. You can find recent dividend figures in the five-year overview table in our latest annual report. 

    Oikocredit will never buy back participations above their nominal value € 200, CAD 200, CHF 250, 150 GBP, USD 200 or SEK 2000. Therefore, members should not expect to receive an additional financial return on their investment if they have purchased participations at nominal value.

  • If we receive a dividend, can we reinvest it?

    Yes, you can select whether you would like to reinvest the dividend, have it paid out or donate it. You can inform us in writing of your choice about how to receive your dividend for a specific year until the 1st of June of the following year. If you have not made a choice, we will reinvest the dividend for you.

  • Will there be any tax implications if we receive a dividend on our investment?

    Yes. If you receive a dividend on your investment in participations, the dividend will be considered taxable income. The dividend is likely considered by your local tax authority as income on an equity instrument. However, this may be interpreted differently depending on jurisdiction. We recommend consulting a tax advisor for any questions regarding dividend taxation.

  • If we redeem our investment in participations, do we have to pay tax on it?

    Capital gains or capital losses may be incurred when redeeming your investment in Oikocredit. This depends on whether the redemption price of the participation is lower or higher than the amount you paid when you purchased the participation. 

    We recommend consulting a tax advisor for any questions regarding capital gains and losses.

Managing your investment

  • What if we want to increase our investment?

    After having made your first investment members can make additional investments in participations any time, and for any amount. 

    To do so you can make a transfer to our bank account with your investment number (starting with I-) or contact number (6 digits) in the reference field. Please contact oi.support@oikocredit.org to receive the bank account details. 

    By making a transfer to our bank account, you file an issuance request as described in the participation terms, and you confirm that you have read the participation terms, the prospectus and other important information. Read more here.

    Participations will be issued with a value date of the 1st of the month following the receipt of your bank transfer, if Oikocredit has agreed to issue participations. After the 10th working day of the month following the bank transfer you will receive notification of the investment. 

    For more information on issuance, please read our participation terms (Annex 2).

  • What if we want our money back?

    To request some, or all, of your investments back, you can submit a redemption request. To receive a redemption request form, please contact us at oi.support@oikocredit.org. 

    Oikocredit assesses whether to honour redemption requests on a monthly basis and, following a positive assessment, processes redemption requests on a monthly basis. 

    Investment redemptions are always at Oikocredit’s discretion. 

    In order to remain a member of Oikocredit, your organisation needs to hold at least one participation (or 250 participations if your organisation belongs to the category ‘other organisations’). A full redemption of your organisation’s investment implies termination of your organisation’s membership, requiring approval by Oikocredit’s Managing Board. 

    For more information on redemptions, please read our participation terms (Annex 2).

  • Can we transfer our investment to another organisation?

    Yes, as long as that organisation is already an existing investor or is deemed by Oikocredit to be eligible to hold participations in accordance with our identity and eligibility checks. To transfer one or more participations, you need to submit a transfer request form which you can request via oi.support@oikocredit.org. If the organisation you want to transfer your investment to is not a member yet, Oikocredit will first start the onboarding process. Once the organisation is successfully onboarded, your organisation’s investment will be transferred to the organisation you selected.

Other frequently asked questions

  • When we invest in Oikocredit, what do we support?

    Oikocredit was established in 1975. Our registered office is in Amersfoort, the Netherlands. 

    As a cooperative, Oikocredit has member organisations throughout the world. 

    When you invest in Oikocredit you're buying a non-voting equity instrument governed by Dutch law called a participation. Voting rights are held by our member organisations. 

    Using money raised from our members and investors, Oikocredit provides loans, equity investments and capacity building to organisations offering products and services to meet the needs of low-income people and communities. We call these organisations our ‘partners’. 

    Our partners create opportunities for low-income people to increase their incomes, savings and insurance coverage, create stronger businesses, and access resources to invest in a sustainable future for themselves and their families.

  • Is Oikocredit a regulated financial institution?

    Oikocredit does not have a license as a bank or as a regulated fund because we are neither of the two. Our activities are not supervised by the Dutch financial regulator (AFM) or other financial regulators. Our prospectus is approved by the AFM and we are routinely audited by an internationally recognised audit firm.

  • Can we choose the partners Oikocredit supports?

    No. Oikocredit’s local experts and management choose the partners we support. 

    We provide financing and capacity building to partners in more than 30 countries and in a range of sectors including financial inclusion, agriculture and renewable energy. 

    Considerations when choosing partners include how we can make the most impact with our investors’ money and spreading risks for our investors.

  • Can our organisation receive loans or equity investments once it has become a member of Oikocredit?

    This is unfortunately not possible. Members provide capital to Oikocredit for funding loans and equity investments to Oikocredit’s partners. We encourage members to be actively involved in the cooperative and help us shape its future, for example by participating in the general meetings. However, receiving loans or equity investments is not the purpose of becoming a member.

  • What if we have a complaint?

    We always try to give you the best possible service. If you are not satisfied with the service you have received, you can always contact us at oi.support@oikocredit.org. 

    If you would like to speak with someone, email us at oi.support@oikocredit.org with your preferred time(s) and phone number, and we will do our best to accommodate your preferences.

  • What if we can’t find the answer to our question?

    You’re welcome to contact us with your questions at oi.support@oikocredit.org. 

    If you would like to speak with someone, email us at oi.support@oikocredit.org with your preferred time(s) and phone number, and we will do our best to accommodate your preferences.

Get in touch

Oikocredit International
PO Box 2136
3800 CC Amersfoort
Netherlands
workT: +31 33 422 40 40
faxF: +31 33 465 03 36

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