GiveMN.org, an online portal for Minnesotans to donate to charitable causes, announced Thursday that it is waiving the 2.9 percent credit card transaction fee for donations to groups working Japan and organizations helping with flood assistance in Minnesota.
GiveMN waives fee for Japan aid and flood relief
The move means nonprofits will receive 2.9 percent more money.
March 24, 2011 at 8:15PM
Dana Nelson, executive director of GiveMN.org, says the small staff discusses events and issues and asks themselves: "'What do Minnesotans care about? What motivates them to give?'" and "'How do we help incent that giving?'"
Removing the fee will remove a barrier for some donors, she said.
GiveMN will pay the 2.9 percent fee, which goes to American Express, MasterCard and Visa for processing the credit card transaction. Nelson says its bank partner, U.S. Bank, always donates its processing and administrative costs.
The 2.9 percent fee is normally absorbed by the nonprofit that a donor is supporting.
GiveMN, a nonprofit that started in November 2009, is funded mainly by foundations around the state and corporate partners such as Mosaic Co. and Target Corp. It's best known for Give to the Max Day in November, aimed at getting the most donations in a single day as possible. The nonprofit raised $14 million on Give to the Max Day in 2009 and $10 million in 2010. It is the top online giving event in the world in terms of money raised, Nelson said.
Promotions like these will help get the word out that GiveMN is open for business 365 days of the year. "We want people to know we're a great place to give every day, not just Give to the Max Day," she said.
Take out money, donate to charity at the ATM
First there was online giving. Then there were donations via text message. Now Wells Fargo is soliciting for funds at ATM machines.
The bank added a "Donate to Charity" button to more than 9,000 ATM machines after the disaster in Japan. In 10 days, Wells Fargo customers have donated more than $1 million to the American Red Cross Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Fund.
Customers aren't charged any fees for the service and 100 percent of the donation is sent to the American Red Cross.
