How donations are sent

Content

• Overview
• How are donations sent to U.S. nonprofits?
• Do we offer ACH/wire for nonprofits?
• How are donations sent to non-U.S. nonprofits?
• 100% Cost Transparency
  • Payment Processing Costs
  • Fundraising Costs
  • Disbursement Costs

Overview

Donation to nonprofits are sent monthly, either via mailed check or wire. All donations on Bright Funds go through a reconciliation process, to ensure all donations are captured and the cost to process and disburse the donations remain at a minimum.

How are donations sent to U.S. nonprofits?

By default, donations to U.S.-based nonprofits are sent via mailed check to the address they have registered with GuideStar, which is a database of confirmed nonprofits that is synced with the IRS. The address we have on file for the nonprofit can be found at the top of their Bright Funds page, right under their name:

Do we offer ACH/wire for nonprofits?

We do! Bright Funds offers ACH/EFT for nonprofits to receive their donations via wire instead of mailed check. If you are in touch with your nonprofit, we highly encourage them to sign up for ACH/EFT. You can share this article with them on how to get started.

How are donations sent to non-U.S. nonprofits?

For nonprofits based outside the U.S., they receive funds through a wire transfer. Wire transfer fees may apply depending on the nonprofit's bank.

100% Cost Transparency

While nonprofits typically spend a significant portion of their budget on fundraising (to hire personnel, contact donors, send mailers, plan fundraisers, etc.), with Bright Funds, the maximum cost to a nonprofit is a small transaction fee consisting of payment processing and fundraising costs.

Processing costs may already be covered by your employer. If not, you have the option to cover the payment processing costs. A disbursement cost may apply according to the nonprofit's payment method.

Payment Processing Costs

Payment processing costs include applicable fees from card processing merchants, international donation services, and other transactions services used by Bright Funds to process and disburse funds.

Fundraising Costs

Fundraising costs include a small fundraising fee assessed by Bright Funds in order to provide the technology and services to efficiently process and disburse donation to nonprofits, thereby reducing nonprofit fundraising costs while providing a delightful giving experience for donors.

Disbursement Costs

U.S.-based nonprofits receive donation disbursements through mailed paper check or ACH payments.

Paper checks may incur a per-check fee to accommodate for administrative costs associated with paper checks. The $25 check fee is applied to donations if the below are met:

1. The nonprofit receives disbursements via mailed check AND;
2. The total donation to the nonprofit is $500 or more

We encourage every nonprofit to sign up for ACH/EFT payments, which do not incur a check fee, and is free to sign up for. If you are in touch with your nonprofit, please feel free to share this article on ACH sign-up with them regarding ACH/EFT sign up.