LENDonate

What LENDonate does

LENDonate is a marketplace lending platform that connects accredited investors and philanthropists with pre-qualified nonprofit borrowers seeking capital for projects and operations. Borrowers apply through an online portal, are vetted and risk-rated (Bronze, Gold tiers), and then listed on the marketplace where lenders bid to provide loans at market or below-market interest rates, donations, or hybrid combinations including a loan-to-donation conversion option. The platform operates with a $50,000 minimum loan size for nonprofit borrowers and a $100 minimum investment for standard lender accounts, with additional retirement (Traditional/Roth IRA via STRATA Trust Company) and Donor Advised Fund (American Endowment Foundation) account types enabling tax-advantaged participation. The 2023 launch of the Bring Your Own Network (BYON) program extends the platform into private-label lending, allowing nonprofits to raise loan capital from their own supporter networks using flexible terms including forgiveness and conversion features.

LENDonate generates revenue primarily through transaction-based fees on loans facilitated through its marketplace, supplemented by managed-services revenue from investment accounts held via third-party custodians. The company employs 1-10 people, is headquartered in Cupertino, California, and operates as a private, bootstrapped entity incorporated as LENDonate, Inc. with a parallel LENDonate CA LLC entity used for its SEC-registered $50 million exempt securities offering (Form D filed 2025-09-17, with approximately $18.85 million sold). Its technology stack is a purpose-built web platform hosted on Amazon Web Services with PayPal integration for investor funding and SSL-encrypted data transmission.

The company serves two primary customer segments: 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations (across verticals including animal rescue, affordable housing, child and family services, arts and culture, and social change) seeking affordable working capital and bridge financing unavailable from traditional banks, and accredited investors seeking impact investment opportunities with portfolio diversification and tax-advantaged structures. Go-to-market is primarily self-service through the online marketplace, supplemented by direct enterprise engagement for loans above the $50,000 minimum and a community-led motion through the BYON program leveraging nonprofit supporter networks.

Name

LENDonate

Legal name

LENDonate, Inc.

Website

https://lendonate.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

LENDonate is a marketplace lending platform that connects pre-qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit borrowers with accredited investors and philanthropists, enabling below-market rate loans, donations, and loan-to-donation conversions through an online bidding marketplace.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Alternative Nonprofit Lending Marketplace

NAICS

Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310), Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (52231)

SIC

Loan Brokers (6163)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSAGAHAL

Marketplace & Loan Aggregation Platforms (Borrower-Lender Matching)

Financial & Insurance/Financial Technology (Fintech)/LendTech (Digital Lending Platforms & Credit Decisioning)

SECONDARYFSAKAHAL

P2P Loan Syndication & Participation Platforms

Financial & Insurance/Lending & Consumer Finance/Peer-to-Peer (P2P) & Marketplace Lending

Keywords

• Nonprofit lending marketplace
• Impact investing platform
• Alternative nonprofit financing
• Donor advised funds
• Accredited investor loans

Headquarters

HQ city

Menlo Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Platform Transaction Fees: LENDonate facilitates loans between lenders and nonprofit borrowers, earning fees for matchmaking and loan servicing. The platform identifies the most advantageous package of offers for borrowers with priority to the most generous offers.
2. Investment Account Management: Revenue generated from managing investment accounts for accredited investors, including retirement accounts (Traditional IRA, Roth IRA) and Donor Advised Fund accounts.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

LENDonate operates an online marketplace lending platform that connects pre-qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit borrowers with accredited investors and philanthropists. Lenders discover nonprofit borrowers, evaluate missions and risk ratings, and submit tailored bids that combine loans (at market or below-market rates) and donations. The platform also supports tax-advantaged investing through retirement (IRA) and Donor Advised Fund accounts, and offers a Bring Your Own Network (BYON) program for nonprofits to source private loan capital from their own supporters.

Product overview

LENDonate is a marketplace lending platform designed specifically for the nonprofit sector. The core platform is the LENDonate Marketplace, which connects accredited investors and philanthropists with pre-qualified nonprofit borrowers through a bidding process where lenders can offer loans, donations, or combinations thereof. The platform offers three investment account types: Standard (funded via checking/savings/brokerage with $100 minimum), Retirement (tax-advantaged IRA accounts through STRATA Trust Company), and Donor Advised Funds (through American Endowment Foundation). Additionally, the Bring Your Own Network (BYON) program enables nonprofits to privately finance loans directly with their own supporters using customized terms. Nonprofit borrowers can apply for loans starting at $50,000 with below-market rate financing options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BYON (Bring Your Own Network): A customized loan program for nonprofits and their supporters to advance impact investment and philanthropy, enabling private loan capital from a nonprofit's network of supporters with flexible terms including loan-to-donation conversion options.

Products and services

• LENDonate Marketplace Online marketplace lending platform connecting pre-qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit borrowers with accredited investors and philanthropists who tailor offers combining loans (market or below-market rates) and donations through a competitive bidding process.
• Nonprofit Borrower Loans Loans for 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations with a $50,000 minimum, providing below-market rate financing, fast and secure processing, and access to new supporters through marketplace exposure.
• Standard Investment Account Accredited investor account funded via checking, savings, or brokerage with a $100 minimum investment, supporting donations and loan-to-donation conversion.
• Retirement Investment Account Tax-advantaged investment account using Traditional IRA or Roth IRA structures, custodian-dependent minimums, administered through STRATA Trust Company, enabling tax-advantaged impact lending.
• Donor Advised Funds (DAF) Account Investment account for existing donor advised funds, family foundations, or new donations, offering donation, tax-advantaged, and loan-to-donation conversion features, administered through American Endowment Foundation.
• Bring Your Own Network (BYON) Program Custom program enabling nonprofits and their supporters to privately finance loans with customized terms, including loan-to-donation conversion options, interest rate reduction, loan forgiveness, and impact milestones.
• Investment Opportunities Marketplace Listings Pre-qualified nonprofit borrower listings on the marketplace where lenders can review missions, risk ratings (Bronze/Gold), ceiling rates, and loan terms before committing support through donations, loans, or hybrid offers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nonprofits can secure loans at below-market interest rates through competitive bidding
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Capital Good FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLENDonate partnered with Capital Good Fund, a CDFI, in raising loan capital for their COVID response fund. Capital Good Fund is a social change organization with the mission to 'put poverty out of business' in America, providing small loans to families and individuals looking to break the cycle of poverty.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CNote: CNote is an impact-investment platform that channels accredited and retail investor capital into CDFIs and community loans, often supporting affordable housing and nonprofits. It is directly comparable in target audience, product structure, and mission orientation.
• Kiva: Kiva is a well-established P2P lending platform that crowdsources small-dollar loans for borrowers including nonprofits and social enterprises. It is the most direct comparable to LENDonate given its nonprofit/mission-driven borrower base, marketplace model, and global individual-lender supply.
• Calvert Impact Capital: Calvert Impact Capital is a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution that raises capital from individual and institutional investors to finance community organizations. It competes directly with LENDonate in the nonprofit-loan marketplace segment and operates a similar investor-driven model.

Broad incumbents

• Funding Circle: Funding Circle operates a global SMB marketplace lending platform, sharing the borrower-lender matching and securitization mechanics LENDonate uses. It targets small businesses rather than nonprofits, so it is a broad incumbent rather than a direct competitor.
• LendingClub: LendingClub is one of the largest U.S. P2P consumer lending marketplaces. While its product is unsecured consumer credit, the underlying marketplace, investor bidding, and securitization infrastructure are directly analogous to LENDonate's platform.
• SoFi: SoFi is a broad consumer fintech with marketplace-style lending, wealth, and IRA products — overlapping LENDonate on retirement account wrappers and investor onboarding flows. It does not focus on nonprofit borrowers, making it a broad incumbent rather than a direct competitor.

Others

• Opportunity Finance Network: OFN is a national CDFI intermediary and trade association that connects investors with hundreds of CDFIs financing nonprofits and community businesses. It is an enabling/ecosystem participant that shapes the same addressable market as LENDonate.
• Capital Good Fund: Capital Good Fund is a CDFI providing small loans to low-income families and a documented LENDonate partner. It is an adjacent ecosystem participant that both competes for nonprofit/impact capital and partners with LENDonate on COVID-response lending.
• Pacific Community Ventures: Pacific Community Ventures is a California-based community development organization that connects capital to small businesses and nonprofits through impact-investing programs. It is a regional adjacency that overlaps with LENDonate's borrower and investor segments.

Regional players

• Beneficial State Bank: Beneficial State Bank is a West Coast-focused community development bank with a nonprofit and CDFI client base. It is geographically overlapping with LENDonate's California footprint and offers comparable mission-aligned lending products.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lendonate
• Facebookfacebook.com/lendonateinc
• Xx.com/lendonate

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about LENDonate