Charity donations app Toucan has been acquired by PayaCharity, another charitable FinTech based in the UK.
Founded in 2020 in London, Toucan enables users to build a portfolio of up to three charities from a database of more than 20,000 and split a single monthly donation between them. Donors can switch each month to develop a fully flexible and unique approach to giving.
Following £800,000 seed funding, the app launched at a time of urgent societal change, with people increasingly eager to help tackle the world’s most pressing issues.
Now the startup – which featured on Dragons’ Den – has been snapped up by Northampton-based PayaCharity, which has helped charities to harness the potential of contactless and digital donations since 2010.
Part of the Paya Group, one of the UK’s largest providers of contactless donation devices, PayaCharity manages the full spectrum of donations and giving with its online platform – including contactless donation devices, QR codes and Gift Aid.
“We have seen a big shift in buying, working and travelling habits in the last few years. The charitable giving industry is catching up fast with the digital transformation,” said Bill Thomson, CEO of Paya Group.
“Together with contactless and online giving, Toucan offers a valuable new option for donors beyond the conventional cash collection buckets and multiple direct debit sign ups; and the splitting of donations across a choice of causes is a wonderful feature in the Toucan app.”
The acquisition will enable PayaCharity to expand engagement with individual donors, particularly the tech-native younger generation for which social justice is high on the agenda.
Toucan’s users will be able to continue to donate to their favourite causes and build a portfolio with control to give monthly and track their donations and impact over time.
Matt Crate, CEO of Toucan, said: “I am delighted that Paya Group has seen Toucan as an opportunity to help them further their vision to bring digital transformation into the charitable sector.
“This is a time where we all need to be stepping up in terms of supporting good causes up and down the country, and I firmly believe that Bill and the team can help accelerate Toucan by reaching new and engaged audiences through their enhanced giving infrastructure and large transactional user base.”