The president of the Fundación La Caixa and the Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks (CZECH), Isidro Fain, chaired the first meeting of the Social and Philanthropic Council of the World Institute of Savings Banks and Retail Banks (WSBI) in Bangkok, Thailand. During this gathering, members discussed topics such as their contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals, shared success stories of member foundations, and proposed new collaboration projects to create jobs and support microbusinesses in developing countries.
Fain also presented three key social programs of the Fundación La Caixa during the meeting. One notable program was a recent agreement with the Sparkassenstiftung on Silver Finance, which is supported by the Inter-American Development Bank. The objective of this council is to facilitate the exchange of experiences and best practices among members regarding their social work programs while also providing guidance on global trends in philanthropy and identifying areas for important developments to improve global sustainability and stability.
The WSBI was established in December 2023 with Fain serving as its president. Members include international actors in social work and philanthropy such as the State Bank of India, German Sparkassenstiftung, Grupo Social Foundation of Colombia, Al Barid Bank of Morocco, GSB Foundation of Savings Banks of Thailand, Fundación La Caixa, CECA, among others. This council aims to bring together organizations that share a commitment to improving global sustainability through their social work programs.
