The health crisis has caused donations to skyrocket on crowdfunding platforms

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a surge in donations on crowdfunding platforms. In 2020, more than $1.2 billion (€1 billion) were collected via crowdfunding platforms in France, such as Kiss Kiss Bank Bank or Ulule, which allow projects to be financed by donations from Internet users or interest-bearing loans, according to the 2020 crowdfunding barometer, unveiled by Financement Participatif France (FPF) and the Mazars law firm.

Between 2019 and 2020, the volumes collected increased by 62%, compared to a 56% increase between 2018 and 2019. “One billion euros of financing was reached in 2020. This is an important step in the growth that the crowdfunding sector is experiencing, driven by a ‘transparent, local, digital’ DNA in line with expectations,” according to the report.

Lending platforms raised $899 million (€741 million), up 46% compared to 2019. However, it is the donation sites that recorded the strongest growth, with an increase of 175% over one year to reach $265 million (€218.5 million) collected in 2020 on digital platforms, compared to about $97 million (€80 million) the previous year.

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Unrewarded donations are exploding

This amount is mainly driven by donations without reward, rising from $31.7 million (€26.1 million) collected in 2019 to $177 million (€146 million) in 2020, thanks in particular to the pools set up for healthcare personnel or companies in difficulty, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report mentions in particular the example of an operation aimed at delivering more than 12,000 meals “to healthcare workers on the front line of the fight against COVID-19”, after the first containment was set up in France. “This project was the first of a larger Stronger together operation which made it possible to finance 190 solidarity projects in 2020 via $1.94 million (€1.6 million) collected,” the study specified.

The profile of the funders

For the “Health, scientific research” category, the volume of donations increased from $3.28 million (€2.7 million) in 2019, all participative financing combined, to $18 million (€15 million) in 2020. Donations in the “Humanitarian and Solidarity” category rose from $14.3 million (€11.8 million) to $62.8 million (€51.8 million).

In addition, the report established the profile of funders in 2020. Funding comes mainly from the Île-de-France (31.99%), Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (11.71%) and abroad (11.02%). They are 80% men and 20% women. Concerning donations, the average age, 43 years, remains stable.

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(Featured image by Rodrigo Kugnharski via Unsplash)

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