“But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money” - Matthew 25v18
I was chatting recently with a couple of guys from the States which set me thinking about Christian Venture Capital (all be it via a slightly circuitous route!). (You can read Andy Mason's reflections on the same conversation here). Along with many Acts 29ers, these guys place a much higher priority behind "loving the city" than many UK Christians would culturally. In this case, their church community is active in business. As churches they are establishing businesses which help fund gospel ministry, and whose activities "seek the peace and prosperity of the city" (Jer 29v7). There was an article in EN a while back about a window cleaning business in Oxford serving the unemployed/assylum seekers. But I don't hear much about that sort of thing among British evangelicals. It doesn't tend to have much of a place or priority in the way we "do church" or make career decisions.
It set me thinking about what a Christian response is to Pension investment and Christian Venture capital...
My pension assets (such as they are) are looked after by two well known asset managers. They invest the capital (on my behalf) in the shares of National and International companies. In 30-40 years time - if Jesus hasn't returned - I'll be asking for that money back to keep my wife and I. In the meantime, my pensions savings provide capital to companies that are "well run" (according to my fundmanagers criteria) and are (at best) "ethical" (as the fundmanager defines it). Corporately & publicly, the gospel is wholly absent as a driver for their actions. These companies operate so as to protect and advance the interests of their stakeholders - interests which are not necessarily concerned for the cause of the marginalised, the widow or the orphan. They do not give money more than is necessary to tick the "social responsibility" box, and never without taking their eye off the after-tax bottom line. They are in every case explicitly secular pluralists in the way they dispense that money. They do not seek to "love the city". It should be obvious that they do not connect with local church ministries, nurture the communities within which they sit, place a high price on "relational" capital... In a nutshell, these companies do not operate while continually applying and reapplying the test: "Does this [decision/action] bring glory to Jesus Christ?".
And (as things stand) I'm investing my money in these companies for the next 30+ years... That is how my pension "talents" are being put to work. Partly because I am unthinking, partly because there are scant alternatives. Either way, if Jesus returns before my 65th Birthday (and possibly even if he doesn't), the conversation could be slightly tricky!
So, how might you go about making pension arrangements differently?
Prudence demands you'd need a portfolio of businesses spanning a range of sectors and localities. (Just as my fundmanager hasn't put all his eggs in one basket, I don't want to be relying on the 30 year performance of a single local window cleaning business to keep me in my dotage!). Plus, in order to make it available to Jo Christian to invest in, it would need to comply with all of the regulation/oversight that investment funds do.
In and of itself, the second of those shouldn't be hard. You'd just need to assemble a group of Biblically thought through, prayerful men and women who combined a few defined skills:
- some Venture Capitalists (with experience at kicking the tyres of business plans, valuaing and investing in businesses,...).
- some Asset Managers (who understand that world, and could advise on what to do with capital that was awaiting an investment opportunity)
- some lawyers/accountants/Financial Advisors (to ensure regulatory compliance, and that the whole thing was above reproach
- some (more) Financial Advisors (to look after distribution*).
- some pastor-theologians (to preserve the vision/focus, and connections with local Christian communities)
Together they could establish and operate a Christian venture capital fund! I'm guessing central London churches are awash with such people.
A totally different kind of investment...
How awesome would it be to receive a quarterly investment report that provided both a report of the financial bottom line (valuations, income/ cashflow statements,...) and also a report on the spiritual and social goods being facilitated. Imagine a piece of paper dropping on the doormat that included "The sandwich business you are invested in is making X on turnover of Y, with encouraging new initiative Z still in development. The shop is being used to host an English as a foreign language course for the Kurdish immigrants who work there and the surrounding community. Not only that, but that has led into a simple English evangelistic course being run for employees and customers after hours... Please partner with us in praying that initiative Z will to help grow the business in the coming months, and for spiritul fruitto come from the evangelistic course. " Now - for me - that beats a few pie charts!
Why aren't we doing it already?
However, the operative constraint would be businesses to invest in. To build a portfolio of suitable investments, you'd need a portfolio of entrepreneurial individuals with a vision for business that connects with the city and with the church.** Where are those individuals? Are our churches looking to envision, connect, equip, support and celebrate them?
So were this to be tried (and I'm up for giving it a go!), I suspect you'd end up with a portfolio heavily biased towards real estate investments (new church offices, buildings for church plants, christian training establishments,...). Why? Because we are "entrepreneurial" in the way we do word ministry. So while it would facilitate those enterprises (which might be reason enough to set one up tomorrow!), simply raising capital wouldn't better enable us to "love the city" in the Jeremiah 29 sense. Real estate alone won't create Christian contexts within which the disenfranchised could work, experience community and be empowered... The young woman with learning difficulties still wouldn't find an offer of productive work in an atmosphere where a person's value is separate from their gifted-ness...
Sadly, a Christian Venture Capital fund would probably find it much easier to raise capital than it would to identify suitable projects to invest in. Corporately, Christian community is not furthering businesses of this kind, not because we lack the capital, but because we lack the vision. Still, some capital would be a start... Any volunteers?
*There is already an organisation of Christian financial advisors http://www.christianfinancialadvisers.org.uk who (to judge by the website) look to combine scriptural and professional advice on saving and investments. How great would it be if they had investments to present that used those talents?.
**(There are organisations that do this kind of thing. I was hearing last night about www.spearcourse.org which looks to equip young people for employement, and then potentially plug folks into businesses run by Christians. Why aren’t there more?)
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