7,230 New CICs, 153 Conversions From Limited Companies — the Numbers Keep Getting Bigger

Seven thousand two hundred and thirty new CICs in 2024. Sixteen percent increase on 2023. Cumulative total: 32,624. Every year I think the growth has to slow down, and every year I’m wrong.

The 2024 data includes a number I find particularly interesting. One hundred and fifty-three limited companies chose to convert to CIC status this year — a 5% increase on the previous year. Since 2005, over 3,000 limited companies have made the switch. These aren’t new social entrepreneurs starting from scratch. These are established businesses that have looked at their legal structure and decided that the CIC model better reflects what they want to be.

That’s a vote of confidence that matters. Converting an existing company is harder than incorporating a new one. It requires board approval, shareholder consent, and a formal conversion process. The fact that 153 companies did it in a single year suggests that the CIC model is being adopted not just by new startups, but by established businesses that have decided to put purpose on equal footing with profit.

The dissolutions figure — 3,372, representing 10% of the register — is worth noting too. It’s higher than the pandemic years, but stable as a proportion. The CIC register is now large enough that the flow of new registrations far exceeds the outflow of dissolutions. The model is growing, sustainably, year after year.

What strikes me about the 2024 numbers is the sense of a movement that’s passed the point of no return. Thirty-two thousand organisations. Seven thousand new ones every year. Three thousand conversions from the mainstream company sector. The CIC model isn’t an experiment anymore. It’s an established part of the business landscape.

The challenge now is whether the policy and investment infrastructure will catch up. Thirty-two thousand CICs generating billions in economic value deserve a support system that matches their scale. We’re not there yet. But the numbers are making the case louder than any advocacy campaign ever could.