When the London Marathon announced they were looking for a sponsor, Virgin jumped at the opportunity to be part of something amazing.
We knew the London Marathon raised massive amounts for great causes each year, but we hadn't realised the race was in fact the single biggest annual fundraising event on the planet. The runners have raised over £557.8 million for good causes since the first race in 1981.
We were so inspired by the London Marathon's commitment to raising money for charity that Virgin Money, Virgin's financial services arm, wanted to get involved and lend their expertise. As lead sponsor of the race, their ambition is to help the runners raise even more.
Virgin Money has over 2 million customers in the UK alone and is one of Britain's fastest growing financial services businesses. Virgin Money offers a wide range of products, including credit cards, insurance, pensions and ISAs, and the company's aim is to make everyone better off through its products, services and community initiatives.
With this knowledge and experience behind them, the team at Virgin Money are aiming to help runners raise more than £250 million for good causes by 2014. To achieve this, they launched virginmoneygiving.com, a fundraising website that's 100% not-for-profit.
Virgin Money Giving is improving the way donations and Gift Aid are collected online, so that more money goes directly to where it's needed the most. Since its launch, over £2.5 million more has reached charities because fundraisers and donors have used virginmoneygiving.com instead of other websites.*
Virgin Money Giving is the official fundraising site for the 2012 Virgin London Marathon. So, if you're taking part in the London Marathon or any other event as an opportunity to raise money for good causes, using virginmoneygiving.com could make a big difference to your charity.
We love that the London Marathon is both a world-famous sporting occasion and a massive fundraising event – it's become a national institution. The atmosphere and camaraderie is like nothing else.
We're really excited to be part of it – and here's to 22nd April 2012 being another fantastic day!
*Compared to JustGiving. Based on donations made by Visa debit card with Gift Aid reclaimed.
