Pennies

What Pennies does

Pennies (legal entity: The Pennies Foundation) is a UK-registered charity founded in 2010 and headquartered in London that operates a digital micro-donation platform serving as the cashless equivalent of the traditional charity collection box. The company partners with over 200 merchants (including Currys, Domino's, Lidl, JD Sports, Greene King, The Entertainer, and Debenhams Group) and 40+ payments and technology providers (Worldpay, Verifone, Ingenico, Stripe, Global Payments, Oracle, Shopify Plus, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Adobe Magento 2) to embed charitable donation prompts into card-present terminals, e-commerce checkouts, and mobile apps. Since 2010, the platform has facilitated over 330 million micro-donations raising more than £81 million for over 1,125 charities across the UK, Ireland, and the Isle of Man.

The technology stack centers on a Pennies API for e-commerce, mobile app, and card-present integration, supplemented by official apps on Shopify Plus, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, and Adobe Magento 2. The platform supports omnichannel micro-donations across in-store card terminals, self-service kiosks, order-and-pay apps, and online checkouts, with documented claims of no impact on checkout times or e-commerce conversion rates.

Pennies generates revenue through two streams: a transaction fee of up to 10% of each voluntary micro-donation, and restricted/unrestricted funding from foundations and individuals including Oak Foundation, Pears Foundation, The Rank Foundation, and Independent Franchise Partners. Merchants and charities pay no setup or operational fees; 100% of donation amounts (less the 10% take) flow to beneficiary charities. The organization is governed by a Board of Trustees, led by CEO Alison Hutchinson CBE, and is not backed by venture capital or private equity.

Name

Pennies

Legal name

The Pennies Foundation

Website

https://pennies.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Pennies (The Pennies Foundation) is a UK-registered charity operating a digital micro-donation platform that enables over 200 merchants and 40+ payments/technology providers to embed charitable giving at point of sale, raising more than £81 million for 1,125+ charities since 2010.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Micro-Donation Platform

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Tipping, Donations & Micro-Payments (MPACAFAB)

Keywords

• Digital micro-donations
• Charity fundraising platform
• Fintech charity
• Donation API
• Payment terminal integration

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Micro-donation fee: Pennies receives a small percentage, up to 10%, of each voluntary donation made through the digital charity box. This helps fund operations, technology investment, and growth of the micro-donation movement.
2. Foundation and individual funding: Pennies receives funding from foundations, trusts, and individuals to support the mission and help realise the vision of growing digital micro-donations. Key funders include Oak Foundation, Pears Foundation, and The Rank Foundation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Pennies operates a digital charity box platform that enables merchants to offer customers the option to make small micro-donations (round-up or top-up) at point of sale via card-present payment terminals, e-commerce checkouts, and in-app payments. The platform is delivered through a proprietary API and official integrations for major e-commerce platforms (Shopify Plus, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Adobe Magento 2) and card terminal providers (Worldpay, Verifone, Ingenico, Stripe, Global Payments). 100% of donated funds go to beneficiary charities; Pennies retains up to 10% of each donation to cover operations and technology investment.

Product overview

Pennies is a micro-donations platform operating as a digital charity box for the cashless era. The core platform enables merchants across retail, hospitality, and leisure sectors to offer customers small charitable donations at point of sale, both in physical stores via payment terminals and online at e-commerce checkout. The product portfolio consists of the core Pennies platform supplemented by an API product for custom integrations, and official extensions for major e-commerce platforms including Adobe Magento 2, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, and Shopify Plus. Solutions are available across in-person payments (card terminals, self-service kiosks, order and pay apps), e-commerce websites, and mobile applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pennies Micro-Donations Platform Core digital charity box platform that enables merchants to offer customers the opportunity to make small micro-donations to charity at point of sale, both in-store via card terminals and online at e-commerce checkout. For retail, hospitality and leisure merchants.
• Pennies API A REST API that enables simple integration into e-commerce sites, mobile apps and card-present payment systems, allowing merchants to embed micro-donation functionality into their checkout flows.
• Pennies Shopify Plus App Official Pennies app available in the Shopify App Store for Shopify Plus merchants to integrate micro-donation options in their online stores.
• Pennies Salesforce Commerce Cloud Integration Official Pennies integration for Salesforce Commerce Cloud merchants to add micro-donations to their e-commerce journey.
• Pennies Adobe Magento 2 Extension Official Pennies extension for Adobe Magento 2 merchants to enable micro-donations at checkout.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over £81 million raised for charity since 2010
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

56 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The EntertainercoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Entertainer, the UK's largest toy retailer, partners with Pennies for micro-donations at tills in over 150 stores. Reached £4 million milestone in donations to four children's hospitals (Alder Hey, Birmingham Children's Hospital, Bristol Children's Hospital, and Great Ormond Street Hospital).
• CurryscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCurrys partnered with Stripe and Pennies to install next-generation payment terminals across nearly 300 stores in UK and Ireland. Pennies micro-donation prompts integrated into Stripe terminals globally as a retail first.
• Debenhams GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDebenhams Group raised over £260,000 in first 12 months with Pennies, expanding partnership to other Group brands including Karen Millen and boohooMAN.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationStripe partnered with Currys and Pennies to install next-generation payment terminals. Pennies charitable micro-donation prompts integrated into Stripe terminals globally for the first time in retail.
• WorldpaycoreTechnology or IntegrationWorldpay offers Pennies micro-donations as part of their suite of solutions for businesses. Quote from Pete Wickes (GM Enterprise EMEA) on working with Pennies since day one to offer secure, intuitive micro-donation product.
• IngenicocoreTechnology or IntegrationIngenico enabled over 10 million micro-donations via their terminals, helping raise over £3.8 million for charity. Quote from José Luis Arias Muerza (EVP Head of EMEA) on power of Tech for Good.
• OraclecoreTechnology or IntegrationOracle partners with Pennies to bring micro-donation functionality to hospitality sector. Quote from Mark Gausden (VP) on reducing friction in consumer experience and supporting cashless society.
• SuperdrugcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSuperdrug ran a fundraising campaign for LGBTQIA+ support via Pennies micro-donations.
• PoundlandcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPoundland won Retail Systems Partnerships for Good Award 2021 with Pennies for delivering tangible community impact through innovation.
• TravelodgecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTravelodge was one of the earliest and founding partners of Pennies. The friendly and affordable hotel firm found ease, simplicity and impact of Pennies a game-changer.
• Greene KingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGreene King offers micro-donations to customers in their pubs, with Pennies donation information visible at tables.
• Lidl GBcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLidl GB partnered with Pennies for micro-donations as part of their community engagement initiatives.
• IcelandcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorIceland Foods partnered with Pennies for micro-donations at checkout.
• B&QcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorB&Q partnered with Pennies for micro-donations at checkout in their stores.
• JD SportscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJD Group partnered with Pennies, with case study showing impact of micro-donations.
• ScrewfixcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorScrewfix offers in-app micro-donations with Pennies, with no impact on conversion rates reported.
• Domino's PizzacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDomino's Pizza offers e-commerce micro-donations with Pennies, with no impact on conversion rates reported.
• WhitbreadcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWhitbread (Costa Coffee, Premier Inn) partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• Holland & BarrettcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHolland & Barrett partnered with Pennies for micro-donations at checkout.
• Shepherd NeamecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBritain's oldest brewer partnered with Pennies with case study showing impact of micro-donations in their pubs.
• Freddie's FlowerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFreddie's Flowers was the first brand to offer recurring micro-donations with Pennies, integrated into their subscription offering. Optimised for unique customer proposition, they've seen thousands of customers opt-in to date.
• English HeritagecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEnglish Heritage partnered with Pennies for micro-donations at their sites.
• H SamuelcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorH Samuel jewellery retailer partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• ToolstationcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorToolstation partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• ZizzicoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorZizzi Italian restaurant chain partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• ASK ItaliancoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorASK Italian restaurant chain partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• Cotswold OutdoorcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCotswold Outdoor partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• Go OutdoorscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGo Outdoors outdoor retailer partnered with Pennies for micro-donations.
• Central Co-opcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCentral Co-op partnered with Pennies with case study showing impact of micro-donations.
• FanaticscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFanatics partnered with Pennies with case study showing impact of micro-donations.
• musicMagpiecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributormusicMagpie partnered with Pennies with case study showing impact of micro-donations.
• London Gatwick AirportcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLondon Gatwick partnered with Pennies with case study showing impact of micro-donations.
• Retail TrustcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRetail Trust partnered with Pennies as charity beneficiary.
• Royal British LegioncoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRoyal British Legion partnered with Pennies as charity beneficiary.
• Great Ormond Street Hospital CharitycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGOSH Charity has received over £2.6 million through Pennies micro-donations since 2011, funding vital care, research, and facilities.
• Cancer Research UKcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOver £1.4 million raised through Pennies supporting Cancer Research UK's 24/7 Cancer Chat community.
• MindcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMind mental health charity partnered with Pennies for micro-donation funding.
• VerifonecoreTechnology or IntegrationVerifone offers Pennies micro-donation functionality through their payment terminals.
• Global PaymentscoreTechnology or IntegrationGlobal Payments partnered with Pennies to offer micro-donation solutions.
• FreedomPaycoreTechnology or IntegrationFreedomPay offers Pennies micro-donation functionality.
• GK SoftwarecoreTechnology or IntegrationGK Software offers Pennies integration for retailers.
• FlooidcoreTechnology or IntegrationFlooid (formerly PCMS) offers Pennies integration for unified commerce.
• QikServecoreTechnology or IntegrationQikServe offers Pennies micro-donation functionality for digital ordering.
• ShopifycoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial Pennies app for Shopify Plus merchants to integrate micro-donations.
• Salesforce Commerce CloudcoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial Pennies integration for Salesforce Commerce Cloud users.
• Adobe MagentocoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial Pennies extension for Adobe Magento 2 merchants.
• AcreleccoreTechnology or IntegrationAcrelec (A Glory Company) offers Pennies integration for digital signage and ordering.
• PlanetcoreTechnology or IntegrationPlanet offers Pennies micro-donation functionality.
• Lloyds Bank CardnetcoreTechnology or IntegrationLloyds Bank Cardnet offers Pennies micro-donation functionality.
• DNA PaymentscoreTechnology or IntegrationDNA Payments offers Pennies micro-donation functionality.
• Trust PaymentscoreTechnology or IntegrationTrust Payments (Trust Retail) offers Pennies integration.
• WorldlinecoreTechnology or IntegrationWorldline offers Pennies micro-donation functionality.
• ZonalcoreTechnology or IntegrationZonal offers Pennies integration for hospitality sector.
• GENE CommercecoreTechnology or IntegrationGENE Commerce (Gold-level Adobe partner) integrated Pennies into checkout systems of select clients including Choice Shops, Age UK and Incontinence Choice.
• Digital Poverty AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCurrys partnered with Pennies to support Digital Poverty Alliance's efforts to combat digital exclusion, with donations facilitated by technology services company LTM.
• Retail Technology ShowcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPennies has been Gold Charity Partner for 10 consecutive years, generating over £65 million through 275 million digital micro-donations. The partnership includes panel discussions and activities at the annual exhibition.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• GoFundMe: Global peer-to-peer fundraising platform widely used by individuals and charities. Comparable as a scaled digital fundraising destination, though focused on campaign-based giving rather than point-of-sale micro-donations.
• Network for Good: US donor-advised fund and online giving platform serving nonprofits with donation processing, grantmaking, and fundraising software. Comparable in delivering giving-as-a-service infrastructure for charities.
• Charities Aid Foundation (CAF): Large UK charity providing workplace giving, payroll giving, and donor-advised fund services. Comparable as a scaled UK grantmaking and giving-services organisation, though operating through payroll and employer channels rather than point-of-sale prompts.
• PayPal Giving Fund: US-based charity that distributes donations made through PayPal's platform to verified nonprofits. Comparable embedded-giving-in-payments model to Pennies, but at much larger scale and through PayPal's proprietary rails.

Direct peers

• JustGiving: UK-based digital fundraising platform enabling individuals and charities to raise money online. Directly comparable as a leading UK digital giving platform, although JustGiving focuses on personal/campaign fundraising rather than point-of-sale micro-donations.
• Give as you Live: UK cashback and donation platform that lets consumers raise money for charity while shopping online. Closely comparable business model to Pennies' micro-donation-at-checkout concept, with overlapping UK retailer and charity partners.
• Easyfundraising: UK shopping-donation platform that collects commissions from retailers when supporters shop online and turns them into charity donations. Comparable in distributing transaction-linked giving to UK charities via merchant partnerships.

Emerging players

• Funraise: Cloud fundraising platform offering donation forms, CRM, and payment processing for nonprofits. Comparable in providing digital giving infrastructure, though serving direct online fundraising rather than embedded POS micro-donations.
• Donorbox: Online donation platform providing recurring giving, donor management, and checkout tools for nonprofits. Comparable as a digital fundraising-infrastructure provider for charities, though aimed at direct online donations rather than POS micro-donations.

Regional players

• Wonderful Organisation: UK-based charity fundraising platform offering donation tools and a workplace-giving scheme. Comparable as a UK digital giving-services provider to charities, with overlap in beneficiary nonprofits.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pennies_orguk
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/Penniesorguk
• Facebookfacebook.com/Penniesorguk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-pennies-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/pennies_orguk

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Pennies