Banca Intesa added a new feature to its digital banking app, Donate via App, which enables clients to round up the amount of their digital payment and donate the difference to SOS Children’s Villages Serbia
The new feature, Donate via App, enables digital banking users to easily, if they so wish, make a contribution and support social inclusion of socially vulnerable categories. When entering the amount on a payment order via the payment app, users are automatically offered the option to donate funds. The amount that can be donated is rounded up to the nearest hundred, up to RSD 100 at the most, and the difference is directly transferred to the account of SOS Children’s Villages Serbia as a donation. There is no limit on the amount of donations, and no additional fees.
“By implementing ESG standards in its operations, Banca Intesa supports business concepts that adequately treat the environment and improve the circularity of the local economy, as well as support important social issues, as elements of strategic development. By integrating and applying these principles, we want to positively contribute to the society and the community we operate in. This type of sustainable support for the non-profit sector, through simple donations of small amounts while making transactions via the mobile app, is unique on our market, and we are especially pleased that our clients already recognised that – in just a few days after we introduced the feature, there have been over 17,500 donations, totalling over RSD 1.130.000,000. With over 520,000 users of our digital banking app, and nearly 2 million transactions per month, we believe that these amounts will increase even more, and that our small contributions will mean a lot to those who need it. SOS Children’s Villages is the first organisation with which Banca Intesa inked a cooperation agreement, and we definitely plan to expand this type of cooperation with other charity organisations as well,” said Željko Petrović, member of the Executive Board and Head of Retail Division.
“We are grateful to Banca Intesa for recognising our organisation as a reliable partner in the fight for a better society and creating more adequate living conditions for children, the young, and families at risk. We are especially proud of the fact that this is an innovative way in which users of the bank’s app can donate funds to our organisation and support our work. Trends in business, including banking, are changing and evolving, but charity remains a basis for a better society. We thank all the bank’s clients and citizens who will support our work and help children in need in this way,” said Vesna Mraković, national director of the SOS Children’s Villages Foundation.
SOS Children’s Villages is a charity organisation that has been operating in Serbia since 2004. It is committed to improving the quality of life for children and youth without parental care, empowering children at risk, socio-economic independence of youth from vulnerable groups, as well as providing help in emergencies, with a mission that every child should grow up in a family, as the most natural environment for development.