Russians are increasingly generous with online donations

Science & Tech
VICTORIA ZAVYALOVA
Positive expectations for next year’s Russian economic growth is boosting generosity across the country. According to Yandex.Money, an online payment service, in 2017 users donated to charitable organizations twice more than the previous year.

Yandex.Money analyzed transfers to charities, private and public projects by studying those transfers made via Yandex.Checkout payment solution and a tool for crowdfunding — yasobe.ru service.

From January to November 2017, Russians donated to charity and crowdfunding sites about 1.2 billion rubles ($20.6 million), which is twice larger than the same period last year. Most often, Russians used Yandex.Money to send donations from e-wallets and bank cards.

In general, the average amount of a donation given by one user to charities and crowdfunding sites is 722 rubles ($12.4), which is 13 percent more than a year ago. Over the past year, the average donation grew by 16 percent, while for crowdfunding the number increased by a third. Still, an average user donated to charities more than they do to crowdfunding — 965 and 643 rubles ($16.55 and $11.04), respectively.

Apparently, Russians trust individuals more than charitable organizations. This year, from January to November, users donated to charities 10 percent more than they did in the same period in 2016. At the same time, the total amount of donations to individuals increased 33 percent.

Russians also seem to have put more trust into crowdfounding. In the first eleven months of this year, people gave them 2.7 times more than in the same period of 2016.

The largest donations to charities and crowdfunding sites came from an average resident of Russia's central region ($16.2), Siberia ($15.5), and the Far East ($14.98). The smallest donations came from the residents of the Volga Federal District, averaging $9.44.