Published: February 11, 2025
Unity’s CEO, Colin Fyfe, recently sat down with Belden Menkus for an episode of The Purposeful Strategist podcast. Here, Colin shares some of the highlights from their conversation, which explored the role of purpose and strategy in building business success…
At Unity, we want to become the bank of choice for socially-minded organisations in the UK. We only use customer deposits to support organisations that address social, economic and environmental needs, and every loan is aligned to one or more of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, to ensure that our funding has demonstrable impact.
Our mission is to help create a better society, not simply maximise returns, with a ‘double bottom line’ strategy that balances profit and purpose.
This relationship between purpose and strategy – and how they can work together to drive forward business success – was at the heart of my conversation with Belden Menkus for the latest episode of The Purposeful Strategist podcast.
Banking on Purpose
At Unity, the strong belief in our overarching purpose has created a unique alignment across shareholders, the board, our executive team, and staff. This alignment is rare in business and presents a powerful opportunity to deliver real impact.
In my conversation with Belden, I shared five key reflections that highlight how Unity’s mission guides our values-led business model:
Strong foundations
Unity was established by the trade union movement in 1984 to serve the common good. 40 years on, this founding mission is just as strong today. Our purpose and principles are embedded into every facet of the business and are shared by our employees, who are motivated by the opportunity to make a positive difference.
Shareholder relations
Unity’s purpose runs strongly through our shareholder group, who are passionate about building a bank they can be proud of – from enhancing customer service and growth opportunities for staff, to continually strengthening and building the bank’s proposition and services.
A business model with purpose
We want to help our customers ‘raise their game’. One of our key motivations is helping other organisations strengthen their impact and, most importantly, further their own purpose and values. We do this across a number of sectors – from healthcare and housing associations, to education and charities – with a particular focus on supporting areas of high deprivation.
Risk and reward
At Unity, risk, return and impact sit side-by-side in our funding assessments and they all have an equal voice at the table. This ensures we have the right balance when considering lending opportunities, and our loans can help deliver tangible social impact for communities and individuals, as well as commercial returns.
Five year strategy
By using the ‘Theory of Change’ model, we are simplifying how we think and talk about Unity’s strategy. Our customers want their money to work hard and deliver social impact, so we only use their deposits to support organisations that are addressing societal needs. By taking our strategy back to the bank’s core purpose, we can best deliver positive change.
Want to hear more? Listen to the full interview here.
