April 11, 2011 | Read Time: 2 minutes
A new “Donate to Charity” button appeared on Wells Fargo automated teller machines last month, prompting what is thought to be the first nationwide effort by an American bank to persuade people to donate to charity through an automated teller machine.
The ATM screen tells customers that donations will be directed to the American Red Cross for the disaster-relief efforts under way in Japan. Once they push the donate button and select from which account they’d like to transfer their money, they can give any amount from one cent to $249.99. Wells Fargo says it limited donations to less than $250 because it would have to report larger contributions to the Internal Revenue Service with customers’ private information. Customers, though, can donate again and again if they wish.
So far, the bank’s customers have contributed $1.5-million at Wells Fargo ATM’s since the “donate” feature was added on March 14. Wells Fargo customers have until April 15 to give through the bank’s 9,000 ATM’s across the country.
“We were quite simply blown away by how quickly our customers responded and how generously they responded,” says Jonathan Velline, executive vice president in charge of ATM banking at Wells Fargo. “We were just really proud of our customers.”
He says customers will not be charged any fees for making ATM donations, and 100 percent of the money will go into an account set up for the Red Cross.
A receipt for each donation is automatically printed at the ATM so customers who itemize their charitable gifts can easily report their contributions to the IRS.
While this is Wells Fargo’s first nationwide effort, the bank has previously used ATM’s to raise money for charity. The bank built the technology in 2005 and has used it regionally and only occasionally until now.
Last year, for example, the bank raised $11,000 through its ATM’s for those affected by the wildfires in Colorado and $22,000 for people affected by a pipe explosion for San Bruno, Calif. In addition, some charities in Oregon have benefited from ATM donations, including the Oregon Food Bank, which has received $20,000 over the past two years.
Charities can contact the Wells Fargo Foundation if they would like to be one of the designated nonprofit organizations included in the ATM donation program, Mr. Velline says.
As for the Red Cross, in addition to the $1.5-million in ATM donations, the bank is contributing $500,000 of its own money to the charity for relief work in Japan, and it will match contributions by its employees, dollar for dollar, up to another $500,000.
The ATM drive so far “really shows what happens when you use technology to meet customers and donors where they live and where they’re at,” says Michael Brown, vice president of corporate and foundation partnerships for the American Red Cross.
