PayPal donations improve charity fundraising

Written by Matthew Carter

Online payments service PayPal has introduced a new smartphone feature that could help boost online charity fundraising.

The company's updated PayPal Mobile 2.5 is made for use on the iPhone and now boasts a 'donate' button that allows users to send money to thousands of not-for-profit organisations.

Commenting on the PayPal Blog, senior director Laura Chambers said the new program is linked to 23,000 charities based in the US, the UK and Canada, such as Save the Children, Unicef and Cancer Research UK.

Ms Chambers said the new technology would help remove barriers to giving across the world.

"We know most people want to contribute to causes near and dear to their heart, but many times the ins and outs associated with donating can get in the way of people's good nature," she added.

The charity fundraising application is now available on iTunes.

According to figures from Mobile Squared, there will be around 6.4 million iPhones in use in the UK by the end of 2010.