Logo for InfluenceWatch InfluenceWatch

Donate
Non-profit

PayPal Charitable Giving Fund

Website:

www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/givingfund/home
Location:

Washington, DC
Tax ID:

45-0931286
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2019):

Revenue: $180,334,357
Expenses: $180,246,020
Assets: $30,736,931

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

The PayPal Charitable Giving Fund is the charitable arm of PayPal and serves as a platform for donors to contribute to their favorite charities without incurring any fees themselves or for the charities to which they donate. The PayPal Charitable Giving Fund was at the center of a class action lawsuit brought against the organization in 2017 that culminated in a settlement in 2020.

About

PayPal Charitable Giving Fund is a donor-advised fund that collects donations and distributes the funds to qualified nonprofit organizations. 1 The fund raises money without charging the donor or recipient for the services. 2 To receive the funds, charities with a confirmed charitable status must create a PayPal business account, and after confirming the business account belongs to the charity, the charity will be automatically enrolled in the PayPal Charitable Giving Fund. 3 After donors donate on PayPal and designate their selected charities, the company routes the funds directly to those charities through their associated account. PayPal claims that the process involves no fees due to various partner organizations that cover the operating costs. 4

Litigation

In 2017, a class action lawsuit was brought against PayPal and the PayPal Charitable Giving Fund by plaintiffs Terry Kass and an Illinois-based nonprofit, Friends For Health: Supporting the North Shore Health Center. 5 The plaintiffs’ complaint alleged that the PayPal Charitable Giving Fund listed “charities on its website that are not registered to receive donations” and failed to “inform donors that unregistered charities will not receive their donations.” 6 In addition, the plaintiffs’ claimed that unregistered charities were not made aware of donations made to them and that unclaimed donations were redirected without notice to the donor or original charitable recipient. 7

The suit claimed that Kass donated a combined total of more than $3,000 to over a dozen charities, including Friends for Health, but only three of Kass’s intended organizations received the funds. Additionally, despite being advertised on PayPal’s website, the plaintiffs’ alleged that the charities to which Kass donated did not have the appropriate PayPal account and could not receive the funds. 8 The complaint also alleged that the defendants refused “to deliver any donations to a charity unless it first opens a business account with PayPal and a separate account with PayPal Giving Fund. Even charities with active PayPal accounts are ineligible to receive funds unless and until they create a separate PayPal Giving Fund Account and subsequently claim those donated funds.” 9

As part of the lawsuit’s settlement reached in 2020, PayPal will pay $200,000 toward regulatory and education efforts as well as introduce additional disclosures for its charitable giving fund. The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) Charities Enforcement and Training Fund will receive the funds to train regulators as well as offsetting costs of investigations brought by state regulators. 10

Finances

The organization’s tax returns for 2019 reported just over $180 million in revenue, up more than $20 million from the prior year. Total expenses were also just over $180 million while expenses for the prior year were just over $156 million. 11

Leadership

Nick Aldridge is the CEO of the PayPal Charitable Giving Fund. Previously, he oversaw the UK PayPal Charitable Giving Fund and prior to that, worked at the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organizations (ACEVO) as the director of strategy leading policy initiatives. 12

PayPal Charitable Giving Fund’s president and chief operating officer, Joshua Tripp, holds an MBA from George Washington University. Tripp previously worked at a poverty alleviation organization, in strategic consulting, and at a start-up telecommunications company. 13

 

References

  1. “PayPal Agrees to More Donation Disclosures.” The NonProfit Times. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.thenonprofittimes.com/legal/paypal-agrees-to-more-donation-disclosures/.
  2. “PayPal Charitable Giving Fund – about US – Paypal US.” PayPal Charitable Giving Fund – About us – PayPal US. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/givingfund/about.
  3. “Join Paypal Giving Fund.” Join PayPal Giving Fund. Accessed May 30, 2022. https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/givingfund/joinppgf.
  4. “PayPal Charitable Giving Fund Home – Paypal US.” Home – PayPal US. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/givingfund/home.
  5. “PayPal Sued for Redistributing Donations.” The NonProfit Times. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/paypal-sued-redistributing-donations/.
  6. FRIENDS FOR HEALTH: SUPPORTING THE NORTH SHORE HEALTH CENTER and TERRY KASS vs. PAYPAL, INC. and PAYPAL CHARITABLE GIVING FUND Complaint (THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS, EASTERN DIVISION February 28, 2017).
  7. FRIENDS FOR HEALTH: SUPPORTING THE NORTH SHORE HEALTH CENTER and TERRY KASS vs. PAYPAL, INC. and PAYPAL CHARITABLE GIVING FUND Complaint (THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS, EASTERN DIVISION February 28, 2017).
  8. “PayPal Sued for Redistributing Donations.” The NonProfit Times. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/paypal-sued-redistributing-donations/.
  9. FRIENDS FOR HEALTH: SUPPORTING THE NORTH SHORE HEALTH CENTER and TERRY KASS vs. PAYPAL, INC. and PAYPAL CHARITABLE GIVING FUND Complaint (THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS, EASTERN DIVISION February 28, 2017).
  10. “PayPal Agrees to More Donation Disclosures.” The NonProfit Times. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.thenonprofittimes.com/legal/paypal-agrees-to-more-donation-disclosures/.
  11. Paypal Charitable Giving Fund, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2019
  12. “PayPal Charitable Giving Fund – about US – Paypal US.” PayPal Charitable Giving Fund – About us – PayPal US. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/givingfund/about.
  13. “PayPal Charitable Giving Fund – about US – Paypal US.” PayPal Charitable Giving Fund – About us – PayPal US. Accessed May 21, 2022. https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/givingfund/about.
  See an error? Let us know!

Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: August 1, 2011

    • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2019 Dec Form 990 $180,334,357 $180,246,020 $30,736,931 $29,755,944 N $178,822,528 $1,511,829 $0 $0 PDF
    2018 Dec Form 990 $156,450,618 $156,615,136 $22,393,859 $21,501,209 Y $155,388,719 $1,061,899 $0 $0 PDF
    2017 Dec Form 990 $106,897,720 $106,650,703 $17,848,583 $16,160,099 N $105,013,258 $1,834,939 $71 $212,378 PDF
    2016 Dec Form 990 $42,616,569 $42,583,215 $13,059,816 $11,618,349 N $40,770,527 $1,997,089 $52 $391,029 PDF
    2015 Dec Form 990 $38,537,722 $38,466,280 $8,477,381 $7,069,268 N $36,958,614 $1,784,735 $896 $486,014 PDF
    2014 Dec Form 990 $22,954,914 $22,998,666 $7,722,472 $6,385,801 N $21,366,271 $1,637,358 $4,379 $407,342 PDF
    2013 Dec Form 990 $18,672,431 $18,564,836 $4,170,249 $2,789,826 N $17,114,200 $1,537,730 $7,240 $376,222 PDF
    2012 Dec Form 990 $17,008,968 $16,590,312 $3,586,849 $2,314,021 N $16,242,924 $732,209 $3,411 $342,915 PDF
    2011 Dec Form 990 $5,527,651 $4,673,479 $1,663,245 $809,073 N $4,774,073 $750,000 $3,578 $222,769 PDF

    PayPal Charitable Giving Fund


    Washington, DC