A donation is a gift for charity, humanitarian aid, or to benefit a cause. A donation may take various forms, including money, alms, services, or goods such as clothing, toys, food, or vehicles. A donation may satisfy medical needs such as blood or organs for transplant.
Fundraising or fund-raising is the process of seeking and gathering voluntary financial contributions by engaging individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. Although fundraising typically refers to efforts to gather money for non-profit organizations, it is sometimes used to refer to the identification and solicitation of investors or other sources of capital for for-profit enterprises.
Street fundraising consists of various ways of asking for donations on behalf of a charity. Those asking for donations may be paid employees of the charity, or they may be volunteers.
Gift Aid is a UK tax incentive that enables tax-effective giving by individuals to charities in the United Kingdom. Gift Aid was introduced in the Finance Act 1990 for donations given after 1 October 1990, but was originally limited to cash gifts of £600 or more. This threshold was successively reduced in April 2000 when the policy was substantially revised and the minimum donation limit removed entirely. A similar policy applies to charitable donations by companies that are subject to the UK corporation tax.
A direct debit or direct withdrawal is a financial transaction in which one organisation withdraws funds from a payer's bank account. Formally, the organisation that calls for the funds instructs their bank to collect an amount directly from another's bank account designated by the payer and pay those funds into a bank account designated by the payee. Before the payer's banker will allow the transaction to take place, the payer must have advised the bank that they have authorized the payee to directly draw the funds. It is also called pre-authorized debit (PAD) or pre-authorized payment (PAP). After the authorities are set up, the direct debit transactions are usually processed electronically.
The Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) is a registered UK charity that operates in the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Canada. It works with companies, private philanthropists, regular donors, fellow foundations, governments, charities and not-for-profit enterprises to enable them to give more. Its stated purpose is to “accelerate progress in society towards a fair and sustainable future for all.”
JustGiving is a global online social platform for giving. The firm's headquarters are located in Bankside, London.
Network for Good is an American-certified B Corporation software company that offers fundraising software and coaching for charities and non-profit organizations. The company was founded in 2001 by America Online (AOL), Cisco Systems, and Yahoo! and has processed over $2.2 billion in donations since its inception. Network for Good charges between 3% and 5% transaction processing fee for donations, in addition to any subscription fees that the charity might incur. The transaction processing costs may be covered by the donor or by the nonprofit organization.
Payroll Giving, Workplace Giving or Give As You Earn (GAYE) is a scheme for UK taxpayers to donate money to UK Registered Charities.
CrowdRise is a for-profit crowdfunding platform that raises charitable donations. CrowdRise was founded by Edward Norton, Shauna Robertson, and the founders of Moosejaw, Robert and Jeffrey Wolfe. CrowdRise was acquired in 2017 by GoFundMe.
Localgiving is a membership network and online fundraising platform dedicated to supporting local charities and community groups in the United Kingdom (UK).
GlobalGiving is 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in the United States that provides a global crowdfunding platform for grassroots charitable projects. Since 2002, more than 1.6 million donors on GlobalGiving have donated more than $750 million to support more than 33,000 projects in 175 countries.
Pennies is a registered charity in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Its purpose is to encourage and facilitate charitable giving, and to raise funds for a variety of UK registered charities through micro-donations made by customers at the point of sale.
GoFundMe is an American for-profit crowdfunding platform that allows people to raise money for events ranging from life events such as celebrations and graduations to challenging circumstances like accidents and illnesses. From 2010 to the beginning of 2020, over $9 billion has been raised on the platform, with contributions from over 120 million donors.
The Fundraising Regulator is the independent regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Founded in 2012, Tilt was a crowdfunding company that allowed for groups and communities to collect, fundraise, or pool money online. James Beshara and Khaled Hussein launched the platform under the name Crowdtilt in February 2012 out of Y Combinator.
Enthuse (formerly CharityCheckout and Primo Events) is a tech for good company that provides donations, fundraising and event registration technology to charities. The company was formed in 2009 and the company’s headquarters are situated in London.
EdAid is a funding platform for higher education, based in the United Kingdom, with offices in Dubai, London, New YorK, Sydney and Toronto. EdAid partners with university and professional schools to defer tuition payment, interest-free.
The National Funding Scheme (NFS) is a charitable organisation in the United Kingdom providing fundraising advice, support and services to UK charities. The charity uses the DONATE brand name to deliver an integrated giving platform across text, online and contactless donation products.
The Association of Guernsey Charities is the umbrella organisation that represents the voluntary and charitable sector in the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
