ACATHI

What ACATHI does

ACATHI is a Barcelona-based non-profit association (associació sense ànim de lucre) founded in 2003 that delivers specialized support services to LGBTQI+ migrants and refugees in Catalonia. The organization operates a portfolio of programs spanning shelter housing, asylum application support, legal aid, psychosocial counseling, prison accompaniment, and educational and employment guidance, supported by a small core team of approximately 11 employees under President Rodrigo Araneda. Over its 22-year operating history, ACATHI reports having served more than 20,500 beneficiaries from 41 countries.

The service delivery model is high-touch and human-mediated rather than technology-mediated. ACATHI maintains 15 shelter beds (seven owned directly plus eight accessed through the Nausica program in partnership with the Barcelona City Council), and relies on referral pipelines through SAIER (Barcelona's municipal migrant reception service) and CMIB to receive beneficiaries. The organization's prison accompaniment work creates a direct service channel into Catalan correctional settings, while the TRANSgredint la norma! project extends educational outreach into schools in partnership with ACPP.

ACATHI is funded through a mix of donations and institutional grants, with no disclosed revenue, pricing model, or capital structure. Key institutional partners include the Barcelona City Council (Nausica shelter program), the Catalan Department of Justice (prison accompaniment), ILGA-Europe (European advocacy network), SAIER (municipal referral pipeline), ACPP (educational projects), and CMIB. The organization has no proprietary technology stack beyond a standard WordPress website and operates as a mission-driven association rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

ACATHI

Legal name

ASSOCIACIO CATALANA PER LA INTEGRACIO D´HOMOSEXUALS, BISEXUALS I TRANSSEXUALS IMMIGRANTS

Website

https://acathi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ACATHI is a Barcelona-based non-profit founded in 2003 that delivers shelter, legal aid, psychosocial support, prison accompaniment, and integration services to LGBTQI+ migrants and refugees in Catalonia, having served over 20,500 beneficiaries from 41 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Refugee and LGBTIQ+ Support Services

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Community Housing Services (62422), Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAFAE

LGBTQ+ Rights & Advocacy Organizations

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Civil Rights, Advocacy & Public Policy Organizations

Keywords

• LGBTIQ+ refugee support
• Asylum legal aid
• Emergency shelter housing
• Psychosocial support services
• Migrant integration programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Barcelona

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: ACATHI raises funds through individual donations via its website, with specific campaigns for transport tickets for refugees, emergency housing, and general operational support. Donors can give online through the website's donation platform.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ACATHI is a non-profit association that provides safe housing, legal accompaniment for international protection/asylum applications, psychosocial support, and educational/employment guidance to LGBTQI+ migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Barcelona, Spain. The organization also operates specialized projects addressing discrimination, prison accompaniment for LGBTQI+ inmates, and community-building programs for beneficiaries.

Product overview

ACATHI is a non-profit organization providing a comprehensive ecosystem of services for LGBTQ+ migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. The core offerings center on shelter housing (pisos de acogida), international protection/asylum support, legal assistance, psychosocial support, and educational/employment guidance. The organization operates multiple specialized projects including Beyond Gender, Proyecto Priscila, BCN Refugio de Esperanza LGBTIQ+, and the education-focused TRANSgredint la norma! project. Additional services include volunteer programs, professional internships, and academic research collaboration. ACATHI has helped over 20,500 people from 41 countries since its founding in 2003.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pisos de Acogida (Shelter Housing)

Quantifiable outcome

• 20,500+ people helped from 41 countries since founding
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• ILGA-EuropacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI is listed as a partner and collaborator with ILGA-Europa (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association – European region), a leading LGBTQI+ rights organization in Europe. ILGA-Europa supports ACATHI's mission and provides an institutional network for advocacy at the European level.
• Ayuntamiento de Barcelona – Programa NausicacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI works in partnership with Barcelona City Council under the Nausica program, which provides 8 additional shelter places for refugees in addition to ACATHI's own 7-bed housing. The program offers accommodation with social and labor integration support for up to 12 months. Barcelona's municipal government has also advocated at EU level for municipalities to directly access refugee reception funds to support programs like Nausica.
• SAIER (Servei d'Atenció a Immigrants, Emigrants i Refugiats)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI collaborates with SAIER, the municipal service under Barcelona City Council that assists immigrants, emigrants, and refugees. SAIER handles initial intake and referrals, and has seen an 85% increase in activity in recent years. The partnership ensures coordinated care and referral pathways for LGBTQI+ migrants and refugees.
• Mesa de Entidades con Servicio de Atención a Víctimas de DiscriminacióncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI participates as an active member of this multi-organization table that addresses discrimination in Barcelona. The group contributes data, testimony, and expertise to the annual Observatory of Discrimination report (Observatori de les Discriminacions), which recorded 1,102 discrimination cases in 2024.
• ACPP (Associació Catalana de Persones de la Pau)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI partners with ACPP on the 'TRANSgredint la norma!' project to combat LGBTQI+phobia in secondary schools across Barcelona over a two-year period. The project involves teacher and student training sessions, co-education commissions, participatory action research, and cross-school collaboration events.
• Departament de Justícia de CatalunyamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI collaborates with the Catalan Department of Justice on the prison accompaniment program for LGBTQI+ inmates, supporting implementation of Instruction 1/2019 which allows trans persons in Catalan prisons to request placement based on their felt gender. ACATHI visits inmates at Brians 2 and other facilities to provide psychosocial support and prepare reintegration.
• CMIB (Consell Municipal d'Immigració de Barcelona)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI is a member of the Barcelona Municipal Immigration Council (CMIB), a consultative body that brings together immigrant-serving organizations in the city. CMIB issues joint manifests and advocacy positions, including a July 2025 statement denouncing the increase in racist discourse and hate acts in Barcelona.
• Centro LGTBI+ de BarcelonaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerACATHI collaborates with Barcelona's Centro LGTBI+ (LGBTI Center), hosting joint inter-school events and sharing physical and programmatic resources for LGBTQI+ community activities in the city.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Orgullo LGTBI+ España: Spanish national LGBTQ+ rights advocacy organization. While focused on advocacy and Pride organizing rather than direct service, it operates in the same country and shares donor and movement ecosystems with ACATHI.
• Fundación Triángulo: Spanish LGBTQ+ rights organization with national coverage and a focus on advocacy, health, and inclusion. While broader than ACATHI in mission, it works in the same country on overlapping LGBTQI+ inclusion themes and shares donor and grant ecosystems.
• KIF_KIF (Catalonia): Catalan NGO fighting racism and supporting migrants and refugees, with a strong intersectional approach. Operates in the same regional ecosystem as ACATHI with overlapping beneficiary populations and partnership opportunities, though not exclusively LGBTQI+ focused.

Direct peers

• SAIER (Servei d'Atenció a Immigrants, Emigrants i Refugiats): Barcelona municipal service that is both a referral partner and a partial functional peer — handling initial intake, documentation, and referrals for immigrants, emigrants, and refugees. Operates in the same city and serves overlapping beneficiaries, with SAIER itself reporting an 85% activity increase.
• Pink Refugee: Dutch organization supporting LGBTQ+ asylum seekers in the Netherlands with shelter, legal aid, and integration support. Direct functional peer offering the same combination of housing, legal, and psychosocial services as ACATHI in a different European national context.
• Centro LGTBI de Barcelona: Barcelona's municipal LGBTQI+ center providing services, programming, and community space. While broader than ACATHI's migrant-specific focus, it is a direct local partner and shares beneficiary base, physical resources, and joint programming.
• MAGICA Foundation (MAGerET): Dedicated to LGBTQ+ refugees and migrants in Berlin, providing housing, psychosocial support, and legal guidance. Closest direct functional peer to ACATHI in another major European city, addressing the same intersection of LGBTQI+ identity and refugee status.

Broad incumbents

• ACCEM: Major Spanish NGO providing comprehensive support to refugees, migrants, and vulnerable populations including housing and legal aid. Comparable operational model at greater scale and broader scope, with overlapping shelter and integration services.
• ILGA-Europe: Pan-European LGBTQI+ rights umbrella organization that ACATHI partners with. ILGA-Europe operates at a policy and advocacy level across Europe, while ACATHI delivers direct services at the ground level in Barcelona, making them complementary rather than directly competing, but serving the same beneficiary population.
• CEAR (Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado): Spain's largest refugee assistance organization, providing legal, social, and integration support nationwide. While not LGBTQI+-specific, CEAR is a major institutional peer and frequent referral partner that addresses overlapping refugee populations in Spain.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ACATHI
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ACATHI
• Facebookfacebook.com/AACATHI
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/acathi
• Instagraminstagram.com/a_acathi

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about ACATHI