Beyond the Ask: Can Transaction Fees Solve Nonprofit Burnout?

SAVANNAH, GA – June 26, 2026 – In the relentless world of nonprofit fundraising, the greatest challenge is no longer just inspiring generosity, but sustaining it. As organizations grapple with what many call “donor fatigue,” a Savannah-based company named Forever Funding is proposing a radical solution: embedding giving into the financial plumbing of everyday commerce. Their new model aims to create recurring revenue for nonprofits not by asking people to give more, but by redirecting a slice of the profit from a cost businesses already pay: credit card processing fees.

The initiative arrives at a critical juncture. While American charitable giving reached a record $592.5 billion in 2024, the foundation of that generosity is shifting. The total number of individual donors has been falling for four consecutive years, placing a heavier burden on a shrinking pool of major contributors and leaving nonprofits in a precarious position. Forever Funding’s founder, Will Black, believes the system itself is the problem. "People still care about causes," Black said. "The problem is that nonprofits are constantly put in a position where they have to ask again. We wanted to build a model where support can happen through activity that is already taking place."

The Engine Under the Hood: How It Works

At its core, Forever Funding’s model is an exercise in financial engineering that targets the complex, often opaque world of merchant services. Every time a customer uses a card, the business owner pays a fee. This fee is not a single charge but a bundle of costs, primarily composed of interchange fees (paid to the card-issuing bank) and assessment fees (paid to card networks like Visa and Mastercard). The remainder is the payment processor’s markup—their revenue for facilitating the transaction.

This processor markup is the resource Forever Funding aims to tap. When a local business joins the program, it moves its card processing relationship to one partnered with Forever Funding. This new processor has agreed to share a portion of its own profitability—its markup—with a nonprofit chosen by the business. The system is designed to be invisible to the consumer, who pays nothing extra. The business, in turn, isn't running a separate campaign or asking customers to round up at the register. The giving is automated, tied to the merchant's normal daily sales volume.

"The consumer experience stays the same," Black emphasized. "That is the point. The giving mechanism is connected to the business relationship, not to another ask at the counter."

For this to be viable, the new processing rates must be competitive enough to entice a business to switch, while still leaving a margin substantial enough to generate meaningful donations. The success of the model hinges on a delicate balance: providing a compelling financial and philanthropic proposition for the business, a significant and steady revenue stream for the nonprofit, and a profitable arrangement for the payment processor.

A Paradox of Generosity

The need for such an alternative system is underscored by a growing paradox in American philanthropy. The headline figure of $592.5 billion in 2024 giving, a 3.3% increase after adjusting for inflation, masks a troubling erosion of broad-based support. The number of individual donors dropped by 4.5% in 2024, continuing a four-year decline. The sharpest falls were among micro-donors (giving under $100) and small donors (up to $500), the very people who form the bedrock of community support.

This trend has been accompanied by a palpable sense of fatigue. A staggering 87% of nonprofit professionals identified donor burnout as their primary challenge in 2023. This isn't just an industry complaint; 70% of Americans report feeling overwhelmed by donation requests. One of the key drivers, cited by nearly a quarter of donors who stop giving, is a lack of transparency about how their money is used.

This environment makes traditional fundraising an uphill battle. Yet, there are signs that people are open to more passive forms of giving. A recent AP-NORC poll found that while most Americans weren't planning additional year-end donations, roughly four in ten had contributed to a charity while checking out at a store. This suggests an appetite for integrated, low-friction giving, a niche that models like Forever Funding are built to fill, but with a crucial distinction: it removes the in-the-moment decision and the associated pressure of the point-of-sale ask.

Reframing the Corporate Partnership

For nonprofits, this model changes the nature of the conversation with potential business supporters. Instead of making another direct appeal for a donation or sponsorship, they can introduce a structure where a business reviews an existing operational expense and connects it to local impact. It transforms a cost center into a vehicle for community support.

For business owners, the value proposition is both practical and reputational. The ability to support a local cause through daily operations—without charging customers more or launching a time-consuming campaign—is a powerful story. It allows a coffee shop, a local retailer, or a service provider to authentically embed social responsibility into its brand identity.

"Business owners like supporting causes, but they also have to make business decisions," Black noted. "When support is tied to something they already pay for, the conversation becomes more practical."

By handling the technical backend—from fee analysis and onboarding to tracking and reporting—the company allows both the nonprofit and the business to focus on the relationship and the impact, rather than administrative overhead.

Navigating the Complex Machinery

While the concept is elegant, the path to implementation is lined with regulatory and competitive hurdles. Operating at the intersection of finance and charity requires navigating a complex web of rules. Depending on its structure and marketing, the company could be classified as a "commercial co-venturer" in some states, triggering specific registration and reporting requirements. Ensuring nonprofits are compliant with charitable solicitation laws across all relevant jurisdictions is another critical task.

Furthermore, any entity involved in payment processing must adhere to the stringent Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) to protect sensitive cardholder data. Transparency will be paramount; to counteract the very donor fatigue it seeks to solve, the system must provide clear, auditable reporting on how funds are generated and distributed.

Forever Funding is also entering a crowded field of fundraising technology. It will compete indirectly with a host of established models, from corporate social responsibility platforms like Benevity to consumer-facing "round-up" apps and ubiquitous checkout charity campaigns. Its key differentiator is its passive, business-to-business nature, which leverages an existing expense without requiring active participation from the end consumer. The ultimate test will be whether the "portion of profitability" it can carve out is significant enough to become a truly sustainable funding source for the nonprofits it aims to serve.