GiveCard Aids in LA Wildfire Recovery by Facilitating Cash Payments to Survivors

GiveCard, Propel, and GiveDirectly to expand their efforts to help survivors of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, GiveCard, a platform that enables nonprofits and government agencies to issue and manage prepaid debit cards for direct cash assistance programs, announced the successful distribution of millions in bank transfers and physical and virtual prepaid cards. In partnership with Propel and GiveDirectly, the organizations came together to provide rapid financial relief to those most affected by the recent wildfires, helping recipients begin to rebuild their lives. Propel, a technology company that over 5 million Americans use to manage their government benefits, identified and enrolled participants. GiveDirectly, a nonprofit dedicated to delivering cash aid, provided funding. GiveCard facilitated the secure and efficient distribution of payments.

Following the successful response to the LA wildfire, the group will replicate their efforts in North Carolina to deliver cash assistance to residents still recovering from Hurricane Helene. Using the same secure and rapid distribution model, they aim to minimize delays and ensure timely relief. With GiveCard’s no-code tools and easy-to-integrate application programming interfaces (APIs), the program is designed to scale quickly and meet the urgent needs of Helene-impacted communities.

“Delivering highly-targeted financial aid to survivors quickly was a monumental undertaking, and couldn’t have happened without the combined efforts of all three companies,” said GiveCard co-founder and CEO Lurein Perera. “We were thrilled to have been able to help hundreds of people get their lives back on-track, and are excited to provide similar assistance to those that are still struggling to rebound from Helene’s devastation.”

The partnership allows the funds to be distributed despite significant challenges, including identifying the right recipients, shielding the program from fraud, and ultimately getting the money into people’s hands. With GiveCard’s lightweight, no-code dashboard, GiveDirectly and Propel were able to easily connect to GiveCard’s APIs to automatically fulfill payment requests once Propel forms were submitted. Recipients were given instant confirmation of their application and detailed next steps, including when they would receive the funds. For many, the money went out the same day the application was submitted. Notifications were provided for each step in the process, including when the account was verified, when the cards were shipped or loaded, or when the transfer was initiated.

Every single payment was automatically imported to Salesforce, allowing GiveDirectly, Propel, and GiveCard to track data across multiple systems across organizations. GiveCard also provided a secure experience for all applicants to verify their bank account details, including identity check questions and one-time passwords for bank verification, without slowing down the process. Personal account details were also not stored, which minimized the risk of fraud or theft.

“Many survivors are still recovering from the fires. Getting money to them was urgent; we didn’t have the luxury to wait for full software integration. With a minimal setup, GiveCard’s technology and easy to use platform allowed us to get cash out quickly and at scale,” said Laura Keen, GiveDirectly's Interim US Country Director. “The process was efficient and secure, with multiple layers of protection, including Plaid verification and one time passwords. Most importantly, recipients were given the choice of deciding how they wanted to receive their disaster relief and in many cases, we were able to send them same-day payments. We plan on replicating this in areas affected by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.”

“GiveCard’s APIs were extremely easy to integrate,” said Ram Mehta, Chief Product Officer at Propel. “The simple and reliable integration made it easy for us to focus on getting payments directly to affected users as quickly and securely as possible. That’s particularly important for our users, who are all receiving SNAP benefits and who don’t have time to deal with extra hassle. In a moment of crisis like this, we’re proud to work with GiveDirectly and GiveCard to offer our users timely and efficient cash payments.”

About GiveCard
GiveCard is revolutionizing how organizations move money to people. Our specialized prepaid debit card platform and disbursement management tools make it simple and efficient to launch, scale, and measure the impact of fund distribution initiatives. From non-profit organizations and government agencies running cash assistance programs to companies managing customer reimbursements, GiveCard empowers organizations to help more people and operate more efficiently. Founded in 2018, GiveCard has enabled the distribution of millions of dollars to hundreds of thousands of individuals nationwide. For more information, visit www.givecard.com.

About Propel
Propel is a technology company that’s strengthening the social safety net for people who receive government benefits. Over 5 million Americans trust the free, modern Propel app to manage their government benefits, save money, and get updates when their benefits change. Propel has partnered with renowned institutions and organizations like the White House, Vote.org, GoFundMe, and GiveDirectly. The company is backed by world-class investors like Andreessen Horowitz, Nyca Partners, Kleiner Perkins, JPMorganChase, Salesforce Ventures, Kevin Durant, and Serena Williams.

About GiveDirectly
GiveDirectly is a nonprofit that delivers cash aid directly to the world’s poorest, no strings attached. In the last decade, GiveDirectly has delivered $550M+ to over 1.25 million people across eleven countries, including $205M+ to over 200,000 low-income American households. GiveDirectly brings over a decade of expertise in deploying end-to-end cash programs for both disaster response and longer-term poverty alleviation programs, including guaranteed income programs.