Business magazine features Barry-Walsh

Business magazine features Barry-Walsh

News

Paul Barry-Walsh has been interviewed by Exec magazine about his philanthropic endeavours and how they relate to his business experience.

Barry-Walsh told Exec, “When I started, I had real difficulty raising capital – how much more difficult, I thought, must it be for someone who can’t even get a bank account?”

Barry-Walsh founded Fredericks Foundation in 2001. The Foundation gives small grants and larger loans to people with a business idea but no collateral. Barry-Walsh deliberately invests in those who cannot get bank loans: of the 500 start-ups he has invested in, 70% are still in business.

“I believe everyone deserves a second chance,” Barry-Walsh said. By making people economically active, The Fredericks Foundation will also save the Government £20m over the next three years, he estimates.

Writing in the Philanthropy UK Newsletter , Barry Walsh said, “I passionately believe that it should not be solely the government that supports, nourishes and helps the disadvantaged, but rather, it should be all of us. Commercial leaders and those who have been very fortunate have a social responsibility to share some of that luck - the irony is that they will get as much from it as those they help.”