MyBnk

Website: www.mybnk.org

MyBnk is a charity offering finance and enterprise education to 11-25 year olds in schools and youth organisations. It also provides enterprise experiences using real money and trains young people to run their own in-school, online saving and lending banks which are independent and FSA approved.

MyBnk's founder Lily Lapenna has a background in international development in Africa and Asia. Inspired by microenterprise projects, Lily returned to London with the goal of developing a programme that used financial services as a practical learning tool encouraging young people to take responsibility.

In 2007 Lily and a group of young people in Tower Hamlets created the first MyBnk-in-a-box branch. Since then MyBnk has launched a large number of different programmes using techniques such as workshops, challenges and enterprise experiences to engage young people in their financial education. MyBnk has now reached over 35,000 young people in 180 schools and youth organisations. 2011 saw the launch of its first social franchise, with the Cumbria Youth Alliance, and the second in Stockton-on-Tees with Five Lamps. Lily was also recently appointed a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.