Currency for Change: The Fintech Revolution Reshaping Social Impact
Words: Alexi Freeman
There are many ways we can put our money where our mouth, or rather our ethos, is. In the pursuit of aligning our spending with our values, fintech innovators like ArtsPay, Humanitix and Ticketpass are making more sense than dollars – rewriting the narrative of payment systems, turning fees into a powerful force for positive social impact – and redistributing profits for the greater good.
These payment processing platforms are turning the very act of payment into a force for positive change, disrupting incumbent payment processing models to funnel fees toward social impact and philanthropy.
For example, Humanitix adds 2.1% in service fees and donates 100% of profits to charity. Compare this approach to the global behemoth and for-profit Ticketmaster – who added an average of 27% to ticket fees in 1995, which soared to as high as 78% in 2022 – and you begin to get a glimpse into why this arena urgently needs disruption.
ArtsPay
ArtsPay is an Australian-based startup co-founded by friends Marc Goldenfein, Lara Thoms and Alistair Webster, transforming point-of-sale payment processing fees into a catalyst dedicated to reshaping the arts funding landscape.
The ArtsPay Foundation redirects at least 50% of profits back into the Australian arts community, actively addressing shortfalls in creative support, to provide accessible, sustainable and meaningful funding.
In 2023, its inaugural year, the foundation distributed $55,000 to independent artists and small organisations across Australia. Goldenfein stated, “Over time, our mission is to become a permanent, sustainable source of funding for the arts.” By choosing ArtsPay, patrons contribute to a more stable arts ecosystem, ensuring robust support for independent artists and small arts organisations.
ArtsPay's first funding round supported numerous creatives including Awesome Black – a First Nations-led creative social enterprise focusing on music and podcasts. Travis De Vries, their founding director, said ArtsPay’s support ensures “the talent, experience and voices of First Nations artists and creatives, which have been historically under-represented, are amplified and celebrated.”
Humanitix
Another Australian-based company impacting the payment processing industry is Humanitix – the world's first not-for-profit ticketing platform – founded in 2016 by software engineer Adam McCurdie and finance analyst Josh Ross to “donate to the lives of disadvantaged children around the world.”
Building upon the longstanding success of industry incumbents like Eventbrite – Humanitix was inspired by Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus and his pioneering microfinance work in Bangladesh.
Yunus’ microfinance modelling motivated McCurdie and Ross to found their startup, initially funded by the Atlassian Foundation before winning the Google Impact Challenge. These milestones catapulted the Humanitix platform onto a global stage – now with operations in Australia, New Zealand and the US.
Executive dean of the Macquarie Business School, Professor Eric Knight, said: “Humanitix takes a part of our life that is very transactional – buying tickets – and turns it into something that’s transformational, making a difference in the world.”
Humanitix’s 100% not-for-profit ticketing platform has now redirected an impressive 6.5 million dollars to disadvantaged children. Their website states, “We partner with high-impact, evidence-backed charities that help disadvantaged children all over the world get access to education, healthcare and life's basic necessities.”
Ticketpass
Ticketpass is a London-based and people-centric social enterprise founded by CEO Rodrigo Bautista in 2017, stemming from Bautista’s frustration with the prevalence of unethical practices that he observed whilst working in the ticketing industry.
Promoting a belief “in the power of utilising tech for social good” they charge up to 3.5% service fee on bookings and their Give Back 50 programme donates 50% of the booking fee for each ticket sold through their platform to more than 4,000 vetted community projects.
Bautista’s vision is “to show the world that a fair and friendly platform is possible while at the same time giving back to help tackle global problems like climate change, poverty and education.”
Ticketpass positions itself as an ethical alternative to major industry players like Eventbrite and are now the leading ethical ticket operator in the UK, servicing 170 countries across six continents. Their operations facilitate donations to numerous charities including disaster relief, homeless shelters and animal welfare foundations.
Whether supporting creative practice through ArtsPay, enabling disadvantaged children with Humanitix, or contributing to charitable causes with Ticketpass, we become active participants in a social movement extending beyond commerce.
With every transaction, there is an opportunity to consider the potential impact on communities in need. Simultaneously, these platforms serve as catalysts in rebuilding human connections that may have declined as our lives become increasingly digitised.
By choosing payment platforms committed to social impact, we can contribute to lifting others out of poverty and making a transformative difference in the world.
Every dollar spent becomes a conduit for positive change, underscoring the profound impact of socially conscious financial choices.
Quite literally, we can make every dollar count.