Beyond Money First: Vicki Saunders on Community-Driven Capital and the Next Economic System

In this groundbreaking episode of Chasing Financial Equality, host Kane Jackson sits down with Vicki Saunders, the transformative founder of Coralus (formerly SheEO), who has circulated over $19 million to 190 ventures through a radical new approach to funding. From her roots on a Canadian farm where she learned to dream and experiment without fear of failure, to leading what she calls a "400-year turning point in economic thinking," Vicki shares her vision for replacing extractive financial systems with models based on radical generosity and community support.

The conversation explores how Coralus uses zero percent interest loans and network-based support to back ventures led by women, non-binary individuals, and marginalised communities - achieving a remarkable 95% loan repayment rate. Vicki challenges fundamental economic assumptions, from Adam Smith to modern venture capital, while painting a picture of what's possible when we design financial systems that heal rather than extract. This episode is essential listening for anyone interested in how distributed networks, localised solutions, and relationship-based economics can create systemic change.

Key Themes & Timestamps 1. Farm Foundations & Early Learning (01:57 - 05:25)

Vicki describes growing up on the family farm, learning resilience, dreaming without fear of failure, and creating through collective work parties - foundations that shaped her approach to community-driven solutions.

2. The Berlin Wall & Freedom Moment (09:30 - 10:40)

The transformative experience of being in Berlin when the wall fell, surrounded by people dreaming about what they would do with newfound freedom, which became an organising principle for Vicki's life work.

3. Journey to Coralus (09:30 - 14:36)

From academic aspirations to European entrepreneurship, through incubators in Canada to visualisation engines, culminating in the creation of Coralus as a new economic model.

4. How Coralus Works (14:42 - 18:33)

Explanation of the Coralus model: zero percent interest loans, collective pooling of capital, simple application process, and the power of network support beyond just financial capital.

5. The 400-Year Economic Turning Point (19:16 - 20:32)

Discussion of how we're at the end of a 400-year cycle of economic thinking, where monetisation of everything has created multiple crises, requiring entirely new value systems.

6. Critique of Current Financial System (21:57 - 26:08)

Analysis of how current economic models serve only a few, the problems with toll roads owned by tech giants, and why sustainable small business models are under threat.

7. Collapse & Opportunity (26:08 - 27:42)

Vicki's perspective on current societal collapse due to inequality, environmental crises, and how collapse creates opportunities for redesign and consciousness raising.

8. Abundance Mindset vs Scarcity (27:49 - 30:57)

Practical approaches to shifting from scarcity to abundance thinking, designing from gifts rather than deficits, and the power of radical generosity in communities.

9. Why Fund Marginalised Communities (31:59 - 33:56)

The rationale behind funding ventures led by women and marginalised groups - addressing the imbalance where 98% of capital goes to half the population, missing diverse perspectives crucial for healthy ecosystems.

10. Better Packaging Success Story (34:15 - 37:12)

Case study of Better Packaging Co. in New Zealand, demonstrating how funded ventures create healing business models that solve problems rather than just maximise returns.

11. Beyond Individual Incentives (40:12 - 41:21)

Vicki's view on intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation, why most founders are driven by dreams rather than financial success, and the importance of meaning and contribution.

12. Funding Transformation Future (44:21 - 46:12)

Coralus's exciting pivot to funding transformation exclusively, paying founders for creating social impact, and completely reversing the extractive finance model.