What KiKa does

KiKa (Stichting Kinderen Kankervrij) is a Dutch nonprofit foundation founded in 2002 and headquartered at the Olympisch Stadion in Amsterdam, dedicated to funding research into all forms of childhood cancer with the stated goal of achieving a 100% cure rate. The foundation has spent €294.7M cumulatively on its mission — including €81.5M+ across 235 scientific research projects, €100M+ in program financing for the Prinses Máxima Centrum, and €194.7M toward construction of that center — and is the largest external financier of Europe's largest pediatric oncology facility. Its research grant product surface spans full project funding (up to 4 years, no budget cap), pilot projects (max 1.5 years, high-risk/high-gain), and, as of March 2026, open access publication cost compensation, with applications reviewed three times per year by a Scientific Board and external experts.

The foundation operates a hybrid fundraising and awareness stack: a 24/7 digital donation portal (secure.kika.nl), a self-serve action platform (actievoorkika.nl), the KiKa Lottery (kikaloterij.nl), the KiKa Shop (kikashop.nl), a HORECA water product (KiKa Water), and a network of ~150 volunteers plus ~30 staff running school education programs and flagship annual events (Mud Masters, Schaats voor KiKa, KiKa Haarlem City Walk, KiKa Korte Broek). Revenue streams are diversified across one-time and monthly recurring individual donations, event registration and participant fundraising, lottery ticket sales, corporate partnerships ('KiKa vrienden'), merchandise, and a bequests/legacies channel operated through the integrated Tom Voûte Fund.

KiKa's customer base is bifurcated: on the funding side, individual donors, lottery participants, event attendees, and corporate partners across the Netherlands; on the deployment side, researchers at Dutch scientific institutions and European consortia via the Fight Kids Cancer partnership. The organization has contributed to a documented nine-percentage-point improvement in the Dutch five-year childhood cancer survival rate (72% → 81%) and holds ANBI and CBF Erkend Goed Doel certifications that confer tax-deductibility and donor trust advantages. There is no app product, no public API, and no proprietary technology platform; the foundation's value sits in brand trust, research portfolio curation, and distribution reach rather than in software.

Name

KiKa

Legal name

Stichting Kinderen Kankervrij (KiKa)

Website

https://kika.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

KiKa (Stichting Kinderen Kankervrij) is a Dutch nonprofit foundation founded in 2002 that funds research into all forms of childhood cancer, supports the Prinses Máxima Centrum, and runs school-based education programs. It raises €25–50M annually from individual donors, events, a lottery, corporate partnerships, and merchandise across the Netherlands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Childhood Cancer Research Charity

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

Keywords

• Childhood cancer research funding
• Charitable foundation services
• Pediatric oncology donations
• Cancer research grants
• Nonprofit fundraising

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Individual donations (one-time and recurring): One-time and monthly donations from individual supporters. Donors can give via the website (secure.kika.nl), iDEAL, bank transfer, or direct debit. KiKa's own donation platform drives most direct contributions.
2. KiKa Loterij (Lottery): The KiKa Lottery offers participants a chance to win prizes while supporting KiKa. Revenue comes from ticket sales, with proceeds funding KiKa's research programs.
3. Event fundraising and campaigns: KiKa organizes and benefits from events (Mud Masters, Schaats voor KiKa, KiKa Haarlem City Walk, KiKa Korte Broek) and campaign actions where participants raise money. KiKa receives proceeds from registration fees, sponsorship, and participant fundraising.
4. Corporate partnerships and sponsorships: Companies can support KiKa as structural partners, through product/service donations, or as 'KiKa vrienden' (KiKa friends). Corporate partners engage in cause marketing, employee fundraising, and event sponsorship.
5. Bequests, legacies, and the Tom Voûte Fonds: KiKa receives income from inheritances and bequests. The Tom Voûte Fonds, a dedicated fund within KiKa focused on donations and legacies, supports the organization's long-term financial sustainability. The Tom Voûte Young Investigators Awards provide grants to talented young researchers.
6. KiKa Shop (merchandise): KiKa sells branded merchandise including the KiKa bear mascot and other products. The shop is accessible via kikashop.nl.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

KiKa (Stichting Kinderen Kankervrij) is a Dutch charitable foundation that raises donations to fund scientific research into all forms of childhood cancer. The organization channels funds to researchers at Dutch scientific institutions via grants and pilot project awards, finances the Prinses Máxima Centrum for pediatric oncology, and provides free school-based educational programs and classroom materials to raise awareness about childhood cancer.

Product overview

KiKa (Stichting Kinderen Kankervrij) is a Dutch charitable foundation that funds research for childhood cancer and provides educational programs. The organization operates several interconnected programs: research funding including project grants, pilot projects, and publication cost support for scientists at Dutch institutions; educational materials including the KiKa Klassenspel for classroom education, speech packages, and cancer story videos for schools; and fundraising products including the KiKa Lottery, KiKa Shop merchandise, KiKa Water, and online collection tools. The foundation's core mission is achieving 100% cure rate for childhood cancer while ensuring quality of life, and all products and services support this mission through either generating donations or raising awareness.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Research Project Funding Financial support (grants) for research projects focused on childhood cancer, available to researchers at any Dutch scientific institute. Maximum project duration of four years. Applications are submitted three times per year and reviewed by the Scientific Board with external domestic and international experts.
• Pilot Project Funding Funding for exploratory, innovative research proposals (high risk, high gain) to determine feasibility before scaling to full research projects. Maximum duration of 1.5 years. Available to researchers at Dutch scientific institutions.
• Open Access Publication Cost Compensation Compensation for open access publication costs for manuscripts resulting from KiKa-funded (pilot) projects. Available as of March 2026 to support open science and broad dissemination of research outcomes from KiKa-funded work.
• KiKa Klassenspel (Classroom Game) An interactive classroom game for upper elementary grades (groups 5-8) that teaches children about childhood cancer through guest teaching sessions delivered at schools by KiKa volunteers. Free for primary schools in the Netherlands.
• KiKa Spreekbeurtpakket (Presentation Package) A free speech presentation package to help Dutch school children prepare and deliver a presentation about childhood cancer at school.
• Voorlichting basisschool - Onderbouw (Primary School Education - Lower Grades) Interactive story about childhood cancer specifically developed for young children in the lower grades of Dutch primary school, designed to help teachers facilitate conversations about cancer in the classroom. Free for schools.
• Kankerverhalen (Cancer Stories) Video-based education for secondary schools featuring four young people sharing their personal experiences with childhood cancer to raise awareness among teenagers. Free for Dutch secondary schools.
• KiKa Loterij (KiKa Lottery) A charity lottery where participants can win prizes while supporting KiKa's research funding for childhood cancer. Players must be 18+. Operated via kikaloterij.nl.
• KiKa Shop Online shop selling KiKa merchandise including the KiKa bear mascot plush and other branded products such as the 'Een ziek veertje' picture book, with proceeds supporting childhood cancer research. Accessible via kikashop.nl.
• KiKa Water A bottled water product offered by KiKa for Dutch HORECA (hospitality) businesses, where proceeds support childhood cancer research.
• KiKa Jongerenambassadeur Programma (Youth Ambassador Program) An advocacy program for childhood cancer survivors aged 15-20 who share their experiences at secondary schools throughout the Netherlands to raise awareness about childhood cancer and combat the use of 'kanker' (cancer) as a slur.
• Online Collectebus (Online Collection Box) Digital fundraising tool allowing users to create an online collection box for personal celebrations like birthdays or anniversaries to raise money for KiKa's childhood cancer research.

Quantifiable outcome

• Five-year survival rate for children with cancer in the Netherlands rose from 72% to 81% over 20 years, partly attributed to KiKa-funded research.
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fight Kids Cancer (FKC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Since 2023, KiKa has partnered with Fight Kids Cancer (FKC), a trans-European collaboration between KickCancer (Belgium), Imagine for Margo (France), Fondation Kriibskrank Kanner (Luxembourg), CRIS Cancer Foundation (Spain), and KiKa. FKC funds clinical and preclinical studies conducted by European research consortia. KiKa enables Dutch researchers to participate in these international projects, with up to 49% of a project budget assignable to international (non-Dutch) research.
• Prinses Máxima Centrum voor kinderoncologiecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Prinses Máxima Centrum is the primary research institution funded by KiKa and the largest childhood cancer center in Europe. KiKa has funded both the building construction (€194.7 million) and the ongoing research programs of the center. Doctors and scientists at the center work on developing better treatments for children with cancer. KiKa is one of the largest financiers of the center's research department.
• Tom Voûte FondsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTom Voûte was one of the most prominent pediatric oncologists in the Netherlands, involved in childhood cancer research and the founding of KiKa. The Tom Voûte Fund, now managed by KiKa since 2013, focuses on donations and legacies (nalatenschappen). KiKa organizes the annual Tom Voûte Young Investigators Awards, a competition for talented young researchers who receive grants for scientific research and personal development.
• KWF Kankerbestrijding and Oncode InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKiKa co-funds new immunotherapy research for childhood cancer with KWF Kankerbestrijding and Oncode Institute. This partnership enables smarter forms of immunotherapy for children with cancer to be researched, combining resources from three major Dutch cancer research organizations.
• Make a Wish (Nederland)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerMake a Wish Nederland granted a wish to a KiKa family — specifically Jari from the Albrechts family, who was treated for bone cancer. The family visited Disney World America as part of the wish experience. This partnership provides emotional support to families affected by childhood cancer.
• KPNminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKPN provided a connection enabling Elena (a childhood cancer survivor) to participate in school remotely from the hospital, allowing her to follow lessons via video link while undergoing treatment. This enabled continuity of education during illness.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation: US-based childhood cancer research charity funding pediatric oncology research grants and clinical trials, with a grassroots event-driven fundraising model directly analogous to KiKa's Mud Masters and KiKa Korte Broek campaigns.
• St. Baldrick's Foundation: US-based charity funding childhood cancer research through volunteer-driven head-shaving events; comparable model of community-led fundraising combined with scientific research grantmaking for pediatric oncology.
• KickCancer: Belgian childhood cancer research charity and co-founder of the Fight Kids Cancer European consortium alongside KiKa; directly comparable mission, scale, and cross-border pediatric oncology grantmaking.
• KWF Kankerbestrijding: The Netherlands' largest cancer research charity; co-funds childhood cancer research with KiKa (most recently the May 2026 immunotherapy project) and serves the same Dutch donor pool with similar grantmaking, public-fundraising, and regulatory positioning.
• Children's Cancer Research Fund: US pediatric cancer research charity funding research and clinical trials; directly comparable grantmaking and donor engagement activities, with a similar research-impact narrative around survival-rate improvements.
• Imagine for Margo: French childhood cancer research charity and fellow Fight Kids Cancer partner; shares the same trans-European research consortium model and patient-family fundraising approach.
• Young Lives vs Cancer: UK childhood cancer charity providing support and funding research; comparable donor-driven fundraising, lottery-style engagement, and pediatric oncology research mission operating in a different geography.
• Fondation Kriibskrank Kanner: Luxembourg-based childhood cancer foundation and Fight Kids Cancer partner; comparable small-team research charity with peer grantmaking and event fundraising models across Europe.
• CRIS Cancer Foundation: Spanish cancer research foundation and Fight Kids Cancer partner; comparable in deploying donations into research grants and clinical studies, with event-driven fundraising parallels.

Regional players

• VOKK (Vereniging Ouders, Kinderen en Kanker): Dutch association for parents and children with cancer; serves the same Dutch pediatric cancer community as KiKa but focuses on family support rather than research grantmaking, making it a complementary regional peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/8118KiKa
• Facebookfacebook.com/KiKa8118
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stichting-kinderen-kankervrij-kika
• Instagraminstagram.com/kika_kinderenkankervrij
• TikToktiktok.com/@kika_kinderen_kankervrij
• Xx.com/kika8118

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 KiKa