Sionic Mobile Corp., a provider of omni-commerce, consumer-to-business payments technology, has introduced online and mobile widgets that enable non-profit organizations to accept real-time, bank-to-bank donations. Donors can use the apps, dubbed Pay-by-Bank, to initiate one-time or recurring donations direct from their bank account.
Two key benefits of account-to-account donations is that they allow nonprofits to avoid credit card acceptance fees and provide immediate access to funds. Sionic says it is working with leading financial institutions, payments processors, and e-commerce providers to roll out Pay-by-Bank. Prior to the launch of Pay-by-Bank, Sionic facilitated digital donations for nonprofits via its Shop2Give mobile app and platform.
In addition to launching Pay-by-Bank, Sionic is also offering what is calls a bundled payments package, which enables nonprofits to access both its Pay-by-Bank and Pay-by-Card widgets in a single platform to consolidate donations. Sionic will process all card payments through Cybersource and bank payments through the RTP network, the real-time system built by The Clearing House Payments Co.
“Sionic is leveraging its rich history of creating practical and meaningful fundraising solutions for the nonprofit community,” William C. Brown, chief marketing officer for Sionic says in a prepared statement. “Delivering direct cash deposits from donors to nonprofits’ bank accounts while bypassing expensive card swipe fees is a win-win for both parties.”
In related news, fundraising-software provider GiveSmart has added the ability to accept donations via Google Pay and Apple Pay through its respective GiveSmart Fundraise and GiveSmart Events applications. GiveSmart is part of Community Brands, a provider of cloud-based software to associations, nonprofits, faith-based groups, and K-12 schools.
A recent survey by GiveSmart of more than 500 nonprofit fundraising and development professionals revealed that 95% of respondents acknowledge that use of technology will be important to meeting their 2022 fundraising goals. Among the fundraising organizations that have adopted technology to accept donations, 44% say they have exceeded their fundraising goals, 34% say they have met their goals, and 22% say they failed to meet their goals. By comparison, among respondents that have not adopted technology to aid their fundraising efforts, just 15% say they exceeded their fundraising goals, 37% say they met their goals, and 48% say they failed to meet their goals.
“Adding leading digital-wallet payment options such as Google Pay and Apple Pay to GiveSmart’s platforms benefits organizations and donors alike,” Steve Greanias, general manager for GiveSmart, says in a prepared statement. “Technology continues to play an integral part in fundraising as nonprofits cater to donor needs. Digital wallets eliminate the need to swipe credit cards, expediting both donations and registration and check-in processes at events.”