Citylife becomes Allia
Citylife, the national issuer of charitable bonds, has changed its name to Allia ahead of the launch of a new fundraising service in December.
Charitable bond issuer Citylife changes name to Allia
Citylife, the national issuer of charitable bonds, has changed its name to Allia ahead of the launch of a new fundraising service in December.
Citylife started in 1999 with a specific mission to raise funds for projects tackling unemployment and disadvantage in different UK cities. It developed the charitable bond mechanism as a way of raising more money for those projects than they could have raised through donations alone. Citylife has so far raised £16m of investment, releasing funding that has helped thousands of people into employment, enterprise or out of debt.
Now the organisation is changing its role and its name to help raise funds for other charities that are working to give people a better future.
Tim Jones, chief executive of Allia, said “The name Citylife was entirely appropriate for our role in promoting social and economic renewal in cities. But as we start supporting a wider range of causes, from microfinance in Africa to international medical research, it was creating confusion about who we are and what we do. It became clear we needed a new name to reposition ourselves and build a stronger brand identity.”
The change of name comes before the launch of a new fundraising service next month. 15 different causes will be raising funds through a first pilot round of bonds opening on 6 December. Other charities will then be able to apply for inclusion in the following round next April.
Allia’s change of name and brand identity was carried out with the support of strategic brand consultancy Poulsen Selleck.