ABN AMRO has partnered with the Netherlands Fundraising Regulator (CBF) to develop a tool that helps donors check their charity and remove their greatest concerns about donating.

According to research by ABN AMRO more than 80 per cent of donors have critical questions about their donations. ‘The majority of clients we spoke to say they are worried about what will happen with their money. They sometimes – unjustifiably – feel they are unable to do anything about transparency issues at charities. Plus, not all people give to the charity that best matches their interests and principles,’ says Maartje van Aardenne, Philanthropy Specialist at ABN AMRO MeesPierson. ‘We often see that people donate because they are asked to for instance by someone collection through a bucket or box collection. We also see that our clients look into how they can best invest their money, but do little research when selecting a charity. That’s a real shame. That’s why we’re saying, you don’t have to donate more money, but do take the time to research whether you’re giving to the charity that suits you best.’

Recognised charities are given a CBF Recognition Passport which gives insight into their spending, goals and activities. At present, more than 600 charities in the Netherlands have a CBF Recognition Passport. The online tool was created by a unique collaboration with ABN AMRO retail banking. Thereby, the information is available for everyone.

‘The online tool consists of the questions we encounter most often in our day-to-day work,’ said Ms Van Aardenne, adding, ‘In the Netherlands the annual giving to charities is almost 6 billion euros. We all need to make sure that these donations go to the right place.’

To use the online tool visit: https://www.abnamro.nl