Dublin city businesses are tapping into charity campaign

CHRISTMAS may be over, but the giving hasn’t stopped thanks to DublinTown, Visa and local Dublin City Centre businesses, who together raised €21,000 for charity.

The money raised from the DublinTown Visa ‘Tap to Give for Good’ festive charity partnership has been handed over to Focus Ireland, the ISPCC and Little Blue Heroes who act in service of the city’s most vulnerable and sick children and families. Each charity received €7,000. 

In December, Dublin Town and Visa joined forces to create a new ‘Tap to Give for Good’ festive charity partnership which made it easy for Dublin City visitors to give to deserving children and family charities during the festive season and into the new year. Donations were made through contactless donation devices powered by Visa and hosted in participating businesses, and at the DublinTown Visa ‘Tap to Give for Good’ Christmas Bus. In addition, 1,000 toys were given to Focus Ireland to distribute to children without a home. The toys were purchased using €7,500 in funds donated by Starbucks. The campaign saw 20 businesses host a contactless donation device in store, allowing shoppers to instantly donate amounts of €3, €5, €10 or €20 to charity, simply by tapping their card or mobile device at the point of sale.

Following the campaign’s success DublinTown and Visa are making the ‘Tap to Give for Good’ charity partnership a yearlong fundraiser that will help another three charities. 

Contactless donation devices will be in 20 businesses across the city throughout the year, and all money raised will be distributed equally to the chosen charity beneficiaries at the end of the year. DublinTown chief executive Richard Guiney said they were delighted to have been involved in this initiative.  “Not only was Dublin City Centre’s business community, and its customers, able to assist three very worthy charitable organisations, but we have demonstrated the willingness of both the business community and the public to embrace contactless technology as the future for payments,” said Mr Guiney.  

“Following the success of the campaign, DublinTown and our members are committed to host the charitable contactless payment terminals all year round, bringing the benefits to these worthy causes and cementing Dublin’s reputation as a generous, forward looking city of which we can all be proud.”

Philip Konopik, Country Manager, Ireland at Visa, added: “We were delighted to partner with DublinTown to make it easier and more convenient for consumers to donate to deserving charities over the festive season. 

“Contactless payments are more popular than ever before in Ireland, and with the support of participating merchants and retailers across the capital, we tapped into the consumer preference for digital payments and made a positive contribution to the ‘Tap to Give for Good’ campaign. 

“Our charity partners will benefit greatly from this donation, and we would like to thank shoppers for their generosity over the Christmas period.”