New Business-Charity Hybrid Sought

Social-enterprise leaders gathered in Boston this week are seeking a new legal structure — the low-profit, limited liability company, or L3C — as a way to encourage investments by foundations and others in businesses with a social mission, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports:

“As the lines between the nonprofit and for-profit worlds blur, social-enterprise leaders continue to look for new legal structures that are better suited to such blended activities than current designations…

One proposed legal structure discussed at the meeting — the low-profit, limited liability company, or L3C — is designed to increase the number of program-related investments, or PRI’s, that foundations make in social-purpose businesses by making those enterprises easier to find. Proponents hope that foundation investment in those ventures would, in turn, spur an influx of private capital.”

click to continue reading from the Chronicle and here to learn more about the proposed L3C concept