Lost among the oft-reported story of how Tencent and Alibaba dominate more than 90 percent of China’s online fundraising by value is news that China’s two largest banks, Bank of China and ICBC, obtained approval to operate online donation platforms in mid-2018.

These companies and many others are increasingly turning to the creation of online donation tools like Tencent's and Alibaba's in a bid to increase customer loyalty. Nonprofits stand to benefit because their funding sources will become more diverse and accessible. And donors will get the satisfaction of seeing their money going toward the specific causes they choose.

This shift presents opportunities for stakeholders with the resources and capabilities to take advantage of new digital channels, particularly online fundraising, which offers significant room for growth, given that it accounts for less than 6 percent of all donations from individuals in China. Another indication of a notable opportunity for expansion can be seen in broader patterns of Chinese giving: Though the country has the fourth-largest number of individual donors in the world—91 million in 2016—they represent only 7 percent of the population. And total charitable donations in China reached 156 billion RMB ($23 billion) in 2017 (compared to $410 billion for the United States), reflecting a compound annual growth rate of 11 percent from 2011 to 2016.

Read the full article about using online donations to strengthen philanthropy in China by Ming Wong and Yin Chen at Stanford Social Innovation Review.