Maybank Momentum Grant is the gift that goes on giving

MAYBANK Momentum Grant, Singapore's first interest-free recyclable grant to uplift and transform small charities, has awarded grants to three non-profit organisations after its launch on April 23.

The grant - which was launched by Tan Chuan-Jin, Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore; John Lee, country CEO and CEO of Maybank Singapore; and Martin Tan, CEO of The Majurity Trust - is repayable so that the returned funds can be circulated to help more charities down the road.

The total disbursement for this first grant call was S$360,000; and the inaugural batch of grant recipients are Limitless, Engineering Good and The Greenhouse Community Services.

Paying it forward

Alaric Tan, executive director of The Greenhouse Community Services, a substance recovery centre for marginalised communities, said: "The concept of paying it forward is very familiar in recovery services. Service to others is a big part of recovery. We are glad that Maybank and The Majurity Trust believe that we are good people who want to get better. And once we are better, we want to be able to help other people get better."

Besides receiving an interest-free grant, grantees will get to attend a series of masterclasses and mentorship programmes along with a Maybank Community Package, which includes a set of comprehensive SME banking solutions.

Dr Lee said: "Small charities are the start-ups of the social sector. They tend to be closer to the ground and have strong relationships with their service users and volunteers. During this pandemic, we have seen the power of what small charities and even informal groups can achieve, playing an important role to address unmet needs in innovative ways. Supporting small charities with the Maybank Momentum Grant and our own Maybank Community Package is one way we in Maybank live up to our mission of humanising financial services."

Mr Martin Tan added: "The past year saw the collective giving of Singaporeans go up, yet we also witnessed one of the deepest declines in fund raising for many of our charities. The needs in the community are growing, and many charities stay committed to meeting the needs on the ground - even when funds dwindle at this time. This recyclable grant is timely to help promising recipients keep up the incredible work they do as we also help them transform and scale."