Learn about municipal lending
Municipal lending might seem like a novel idea. But citizens lending to local government has a very long history, and a reassuring track record.
A long history in the UK
For more than 160 years, National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has quietly underpinned the nation’s finances. Millions of citizens have lent directly to central government, but less well known is that local government once did something similar. Councils raised finance directly from local businesses and residents to fund water systems, transport networks, parks and public health infrastructure, and the history is fascinating.
Understanding the risks of municipal lending
Investing in local government is low risk, due to the way it is regulated. Councils operate under strict controls to ensure their budgets and balanced and, importantly for investors, they cannot go bankrupt to avoid paying debts.