The government has announced plans to expand the type of assets captured under the Dormant Assets Scheme and to use the available funds to support charities in the United Kingdom.
The Dormant Assets Scheme uses funds from dormant assets (financial products, such as bank accounts, which have not been used for many years) which cannot be reunited with its owner to fund social and environmental initiatives across the UK.
Since its launch in 2011, 35 banks and building societies have voluntarily transferred funds into the scheme, and over £800million has been donated to charitable causes.
The UK Government has now announced an expansion of the scheme, which will be expanded to cover pensions, insurance, investment and wealth management accounts. The result is an estimated £880million that will be used to fund charities and support local communities.
The government will launch a public consultation this summer to determine how to use the scheme money: following the publication of the Levelling Up White Paper, one of the options in England is to help level up opportunities for young people and communities across the country, for example by funding youth activities, projects supporting people to manage their money, and improving social infrastructure via community wealth funds.
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