Four crowdfunding platforms commit to best practices for safer online giving

SINGAPORE — Four major crowdfunding platforms will adopt a set of best practices to help the public donate with greater peace of mind.

The Code of Practice for Online Charitable Fund-raising will be adopted by Giving.sg, Give.asia, The Ray of Hope Initiative and SimplyGiving, announced Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Grace Fu on Tuesday (Jan 23).

As part of the Code, the platforms will provide regular updates on funds collected for appeals they host, the total amount raised after an appeal has ended, and the nature and amount of fees and charges that apply. They will maintain proper records of donations received.

The platforms will put in place systems to detect fraud and mismanagement of funds early. To ensure the legitimacy of appeals, they will have processes to verify the identity of fundraisers and beneficiaries via the submission of documents to substantiate an appeal.

The platforms will also cooperate with the Commissioner of Charities on periodic audits of their systems and processes.

Individuals conducting fundraising through their platforms will need to declare they comply with relevant requirements under the Charities Act of Singapore. The fundraisers will have to make accurate representations to donors, maintain proper records of donations and use the donations according to the intended purpose.

The Code, developed together with the Commissioner of Charities, is part of efforts to regulate the evolving online fundraising landscape. Amendments to the Charities Act were passed earlier this month in Parliament, giving the Commissioner new powers to regulate charities and fundraising appeals - both online and offline – here. Ms Fu had said her ministry would adopt a co-regulation approach towards online fundraising.

The charity sector is sizeable and online fundraising is growing.

The overall annual receipt – which includes government grants, donations and fees – of the charity sector is S$16.4 billion, said Member of Parliament (Jalan Besar) Denise Phua this month. Out of this, S$2.7 billion are donations by the public.

Last December, Giving.sg, by the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre (NVPC) and the result of a merger of the SG Gives and SG Cares platforms in 2015, said it had crossed S$100 million in donations raised for charities. About S$50 million was raised between 2010 and 2015, but it took only about two years for the amount to double, said NVPC’s director of digital innovation Andy Sim.