JAK Members Bank (https://www.jak.se/)
The co-operative society Jord Arbejde Kapital was founded in Denmark during the Great Depression in 1931. The society issued a popular local currency which was subsequently outlawed by the Danish government in 1933. In 1934 it founded an interest-free savings and loan system and a Local Exchange Trading System. Though both systems were forced to close, the savings and loan system re-emerged in 1944. The experience of JAK-banking in Denmark inspired a group in Sweden to develop a non-profit organisation named Jord Arbete Kapital - Riksförening för Ekonomisk Frigörelse (National Association for Economic Emancipation) in 1965. This pioneers' group developed a mathematical system based on Saving Points, designated the "balanced saving system". The association grew slowly at first. In 1997, a legislative amendment required the association to receive a banking license from the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority in order to continue operating as a financial institution, which was granted in that year. The bank's deposits are insured by the government.
Philosophy[edit]
According to JAK's philosophy, economic instability arises out of and is a consequence of the levying of interest.
JAK operates under the following principles:
- Interest moves money from the poor to the rich
The main aim of the bank is to provide its members with a viable, feasible financial instrument, sustainable for the environment and serving the local economy.
- Interest favours projects which yield high profits in the short term
Membership[edit]
Marketing for JAK is done primarily by volunteers and word-of-mouth advertising. Deposits are accepted and loans are given in Swedish Krona (SEK). Mortgages or personal guarantees may be made only if the property or the guarantor is Swedish. It is compulsory to have Swedish residency to apply for a loan from JAK. The savings of members are covered under the deposit guarantees of the Swedish banking system.
JAK in other countries[edit]
JAK organisations exist in Denmark, Germany and Italy, in addition to Sweden. There was also an earlier attempt to start such a bank in Norway.
The Danish organisations, which date back to 1931, are known as J.A.K. Andelskasser, and there are 14 independent organisations which hold the legal status of andelskasse, which is a form of bank in Denmark. They are all members of Landsforeningen J.A.K., the association of JAK organisations.
The above is all from Wikipedia, directly quoted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JAK_Members_Bank
Using this material under: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0
Daniel Treccia
A-Team, Marketing and Community Development
Open Source Developers and FSF funding cryptocurrency project since 2011
"From the many one, from one, the source"