Kin's Community Share Offer

In just two years, the Kin team has created a new cooperative model and built a digital platform that hundreds of people in more than 30 groups have already used to save tens of thousands of pounds. 

This is amazing but it is a tiny fraction of the impact we know Kin can have. Kin was founded with the massive goal of kickstarting a new, fair, sustainable economic system. We always knew that would take two things: 

1. collective financial infrastructure;
2. a radical economic movement.

We’ve proven the infrastructure works. Now, we need to focus on building the movement. By purchasing Kin shares you are supporting vital infrastructure and driving the grassroots movement to create community-led economies everywhere.

OUR GOAL IS TO RAISE £300,000

This will allow us to grow the membership in order to make Kin sustainable by:

1. Expanding the team >> increasing capacity

2. Developing a Kin app >> increasing ease and accessibility

3. Three years secure budget >> increasing strategic projects

TO GO FROM HUNDREDS OF MEMBERS TO THOUSANDS

We recently asked 165 people in one London borough if they would be interested in joining a savings club. 78% said yes or maybe. For food cooperatives it's 98%! There's so much potential but to go from saying to doing needs more resources than we have right now. 

Communities are using Kin in innovative ways including solidarity funds, loan funds, board game groups, food coops, housing groups and more. 

For Kin members, money is a common resource that unites, not a source of secrecy or isolation. They create direct economic value from collective action, making collective action valuable again. Sharing this experience is how we change the financial culture and, with it, the economic system.

Community Shares were invented to help co-operatives raise money but they are not the same as company shares. 

• Community shares cannot be traded or sold, only withdrawn from the cooperative. There's no stock exchange. 
• Shares ≠ voting power. Every member of the cooperative has one vote only, regardless of their investment.
• Share value is linked to the original financial investment, not the total market value of the co-operative; i.e. £100 of shares will continue to be worth £100 plus any interest owed.* 

*N.B. This isn't guaranteed: if the cooperative is performing poorly, the board may decide to write down share values, and in the event of failure you could lose some or all of your investment (see below).

Buying shares allows you to share in driving the success of the co-operative, 

putting your capital to work aligned with your values. 

Kin has begun the process to have this share offer to be accredited with the Community Shares Standard Mark, the "gold standard awarded to community share offers based on an independent assessment". Any changes during this process will be communicated to shareholders.

Buying shares is incredibly easy. Follow these steps:

1. Register to become a member of Kin cooperative;

2. Once you have logged in, click on the “buy shares” button;

3. Choose the amount and the level of interest you want to receive on your investment;

4. Follow the instructions to complete your purchase. 

You will receive a confirmation once the funds are received and will be able to track your shares from your personal Kin Shares page. 

Choose your annual rate of interest from these options:

1. 0% interest

   Why would I choose this? 0% allows the co-operative more space to grow with less pressure. You are generously giving the interest you would receive to the co-op to ensure the co-op succeeds.

    

2. Inflation tracker

   Why would I choose this? Tracking inflation means your investment keeps its value relative to the economy around you. After all, supporting community projects shouldn't make you poorer. 

    

3. Inflation tracker plus (up to 5%)

   Why would I choose this? We know you could be investing in other things and you might be at a place in your life where you want to invest in Kin but you need to think about your own sustainability. Inflation tracker plus is for you: it's a non-extractive rate revised annually (see below). 

How are interest and inflation calculated? 

Interest will be applied annually on or before Kin's financial year end: September 30th. 

The inflation rate will be calculated every September by averaging the previous 12-months' Consumer Price Index (CPI) rates published by the ONS. 

We model a non-extractive form of applying interest to Tracker Plus shares: 

• we cap the maximum possible interest at 2% above the inflation rate up to a maximum of 5% including inflation - because capital is necessary but shouldn't take more of the value than the people creating the value;
• we link interest rates to Kin achieving its sustainability targets - because when there are external pressures making growth hard, there should be less pressure from capital to grow.

Every year, Kin will publish member growth targets and our financial position at our annual general meeting. Based on these, the board will decide whether to apply the inflation rate, inflation + 1%, or inflation + 2% to Tracker Plus shares. 

Share interest example table

Based on an initial £1000 investment over three years*: 

*these are example projections based on 2026 inflation rates (2.5%) and assuming average growth achievement. Apart from the 0% tier, these projections may be higher or lower than the reality.

Is interest ethical / halal?

We term interest a "cost of capital". What that means is: we need capital (demand), we ask you for it (supply), we pay a little as a reciprocal gift for the effort you make and the sacrifice of being without it. We have chosen these ways of calculating interest to ensure that the cost is fair but not so much that it undermines the purpose: to make Kin sustainable.

Many traditional savings clubs are Shari'a-compliant. However, receiving interest on shares is not. To learn more about halal savings clubs and loan funds, visit the Is it halal? FAQ. 

You can request to withdraw your shares - in whole or in part - through your personal Kin Shares page.

We expect members to invest for a minimum term of 3 years

This allows us the time we need to make Kin sustainable and profitable in order to pay back your investment. We know life happens and we will do our best to facilitate early withdrawals but it will depend on the cooperative’s current financial stability, the volume of requests, and our confidence in finding replacement capital.

The board may also suspend withdrawals if requests would put Kin's ability to operate at risk. Any suspension will be communicated to all members.

Tax & SEIS

Interest on shares is taxable income if it exceeds your Personal Savings Allowance. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and is subject to change in future. If you are unsure, please consult a professional. 

We are exploring the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), which would allow investors to receive up to 50% income tax relief and capital gains tax exemption on gains from SEIS shares held for three years. We have received advice that SEIS relief can be backdated on shares bought today. We will communicate any changes to the tax / relief status of shares as soon as they are known and please get in touch to find out more. 

Our mission to change the economic system is aligned with our aim for Kin to be 100% member funded. 

More people using Kin means more people treating money as a collective resource, securing community-led financial infrastructure and making space for more ambitious development. It's a virtuous cycle.

Today: 300+ members in 30+ groups

Aim: 7,000+ members by 2029

7,000 members would support a three-person work team. Our aim is to surpass that goal in 2029, if not before. Once we do, we will build reserves and buy back your shares to reduce the co-operative's costs. 

How?

1. By connecting with the hundreds - if not thousands - of established communities across the country who would benefit from using Kin, including faith groups, mutual aid groups, self-employed workers, community centres & working mens' clubs.

2. By building a movement to encourage tens of thousands to establish food cooperatives and savings clubs and be ambitious to transform their local economies. 

Inspired by co-operative movements including Mondragon (Basque Country), Kudumbashree (Kerala, India) and others, the movement uses accessible neighbourly cooperation (food co-ops and savings) to create a platform for more ambitious projects like establishing worker and energy co-operatives and community land trusts.  We have already established a group in Haringey (London) and we aim to work with our partners and the new, co-op friendly councils to build momentum in multiple areas at once. 

£28,000+ money pooled by members in Kin's first year

2026-27: £100,000+

2029-30: £1,000,000+

Members donate a minimum of £1 per month unless they can't afford it. This accessible pricing increases our social impact where it is needed most and many members donate more than the minimum because they value the work we do. We aim to make Kin more accessible. 2/3 of respondents to our member survey say they would find a Kin app easier to use. 

3. A progressive web app (PWA) building on Kin's open source platform, with an even cleaner user experience. 

4. By applying for grants to accelerate app development or to further expand the team, driving faster growth and greater impact.

Right now, we need your support. And we intend to make the most of it by:

• Applying to the Booster Fund to match fund investments up to £50,000.
• Applying to the Reach fund to develop a campaign to get this share offer to a wider audience, leading to more flexibility around share withdrawals.

Our Governance

Kin Co-operative is owned and run by its members. Each member has one vote in the general assembly. 

Kin has two member categories:

• Workers (employees and volunteer) members 
• Users (Mutual Aid Club Members). 

Each category carries 50% of the weight of votes cast so that no stakeholder group can overpower the interests of the other.

Members elect the board of directors (above) at the annual general meeting. The board is responsible to the members for the day to day running of the coop carried out by the workers.

Shareholding is subject to these criteria:

You may find the answer to your questions on our Community Shares FAQ page. 

Presentation shouldn't be a barrier. If you have any questions, or find it easier to understand by listening or discussion, please get in touch:

Useful links:

• Community Shares FAQ page
• Kin Co-operative Accounts 2024-2025
• Kin Cooperative's Legal Rules
• Finance Summary Table (coming soon)