London Marathon Events (LME) has announced Enthuse as its new fundraising partner, after Virgin Money Giving closed in November last year.
Enthuse will become the online fundraising platform for all London Marathon’s Events this month, supporting the London Marathon, RideLondon, Vitality 10,000, The Big Half and Swim Serpentine.
The events organisation today confirmed a three-year partnership with Enthuse following an “extensive consultation process” with all major online fundraising platforms.
LME's new partnership will begin after the results for the RideLondon and London Marathon ballots are announced this month, and participants can begin fundraising for those challenges.
Virgin Money had been the London Marathon sponsor for over a decade, and when that deal came to an end the company decided to close its donation platform. Last year Virgin Money Giving said it was closing due to the amount of investment it would take to remain a competitor in the market.
‘Different to other fundraising platforms’
Enthuse was formed in 2009 and has raised over £100m for over 4,000 charities. Through the new fundraising partner, event participants will be able to post updates, images and videos of their fundraising activities.
Charity branding will be at the forefront of the fundraising pages, with LME saying that setting up a fundraiser will become a “seamless part of the registration process for participants, with no need to create a separate account”.
Chester Mojay-Sinclare, Enthuse CEO and founder, said: “At Enthuse, our approach is different to other fundraising platforms. We believe in putting the charity’s branding first and creating innovative solutions that help them to maximise their fundraising and that’s exactly what we’ll deliver.
“We’re absolutely delighted that London Marathon Events has entrusted us to take the baton from Virgin Money Giving as its official online fundraising partner. It’s a real honour to be powering some of the largest and most prestigious fundraising events in the world and we can’t wait to get to work with the brilliant London Marathon Events team.”
What does this mean for charities and participants?
Charities registered with the events will have access to donations data, insights and analytics through the platform. When asked on the monetary arrangement between the two partners, LME told Civil Society News: “We don’t disclose details of financial arrangements.”
Charities will need an Enthuse account to receive donations, but there are no sign-up, subscription or platform fees through Enthuse.
Enthuse collects voluntary tips from donors which covers the majority of digital fundraising costs. Charities that sign up will only pay the payment provider and Gift Aid services fees. Enthuse charges 1.9% plus 20p per transaction to cover the cost of the card fee. For processing Gift Aid on behalf of the charity, Enthuse takes 5%.
Hugh Brasher, event director of LME, said: “We were looking for a new online fundraising partner that would provide the best possible service for our charities, our participants and their donors.
“Enthuse has put together an innovative fundraising platform and, with their commitment to technology, service, value and transparency, we are confident that over time Enthuse will become the market leader.
“We look forward to working with Enthuse to raise many millions more for good causes through our world-leading events.”
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