Poverty comes at a cost. People on low incomes often pay more for essential goods and services — from energy and credit to insurance and financial products. This injustice, known as the poverty premium, affects around 14.3 million people in the UK, or 22% of the population, who pay an average of £490 more per year simply because they are poor. These structural inequalities reinforce disadvantage and limit opportunities for financial resilience.

We are a founding investor in the Fair By Design Fund, created to tackle the root causes of the poverty premium. Our role has been to support scalable solutions that not only reduce costs for low-income households but redesign the systems that keep them in place.

The fund backs ventures using technology and innovation to challenge outdated market models and offer fairer, more inclusive alternatives. Through this approach, we aim to drive systemic change — one that enables markets to work better for everyone.

Fair By Design consists of two interconnected elements:

• An advocacy programme, led by the Barrow Cadbury Trust, focused on influencing policy and regulation

• A venture fund, managed by Ascension Ventures, investing in tech-driven startups that address the poverty premium

Between 2018 and February 2023, the venture fund invested in 25 companies at the pre-seed and seed stages. By the end of 2023, it had:

• Reached 2.9 million customers

• Enabled an estimated £283 million reduction in the poverty premium

• Delivered an average saving of £99 per customer

• Achieved two exits: Credit Kudos (acquired by Apple) and Guardian Angel (acquired by Octopus)

Now in its realisation phase, the fund continues to generate impact through a portfolio of ventures that challenge the status quo and expand access to essential services.

Venture highlights

Credit Kudos – A credit reference agency using open banking to help lenders make fairer, data-driven decisions for people with limited credit history. (Acquired by Apple)

Guardian Angel – A platform helping people navigate the practical and emotional challenges of bereavement with greater transparency and care. (Acquired by Octopus)

Switchee – Smart home technology helping social landlords reduce energy waste and lower heating costs for residents.

Wagestream – A financial wellbeing platform allowing workers to access earned wages in real time, improving cash flow and reducing reliance on high-cost credit.

Tembo – A mortgage platform unlocking family-supported lending to help first-time buyers and those with limited credit access affordable home ownership.

MiniBems – An intelligent energy management system designed to optimise heating in shared and multi-unit buildings, lowering bills and improving efficiency.