JustGiving’s ‘social good’ crowdfunding site Yimby goes live
A new online platform that allows individuals to pledge money to projects that deliver measurable benefits to communities and the wider society has been launched by fundraising website JustGiving.
Yimby, whose name is a positive spin on nimby (‘not in my backyard’), will act as the middle man between socially-orientated projects and the people who want to support them financially.
The company behind the project, JustGiving, has raised £1.6 billion for more than 13,000 charities across the globe since launching in 2001. It takes 5% commission on all donations on its charity-focused site – a feature that it transfers to Yimby, though only for the projects that meet their funding target.
Users have 30 days to hit their targets, but unlike some other crowdfunding sites like Sponsume and Indiegogo, projects on Yimby must hit their target in order to receive the funding. If they don’t, no money changes hands.
Julia Groves, chair of the UK Crowdfunding Association (UKCFA), spoke positively about Yimby’s launch.
“It’s great to see JustGiving, the original British crowdfunder, moving beyond charity donations into funding projects for social good through their new Yimby platform”, she said.
“I look forward to seeing how they use their significant experience and klout to help people directly fund projects they feel passionate about. We very much welcome Yimby as one of the newest UKCFA members.”