Administrators appointed for GoodBox Co Labs
Howard Lake | 18 July 2022 | News
Jeremy Frost and Patrick Wadsted of Frost Group Ltd have been appointed as joint administrators for the contactless giving company The GoodBox Co Labs Ltd.
The High Court made an Administration Order against GoodBox on 28 June and appointed the administrators.
GoodBox was founded in 2016 and had worked with a large number of charities, including the British Red Cross and Natural History Museum.
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Although it had found charitable giving during the pandemic challenging, it still managed to raise £9 million in a convertible loan deal through the UK government’s Future Fund scheme in January 2021.
However, since then revenues have not, according to the administrators, “improved as quickly as hoped” and “the lack of an ability to raise the further sums necessary to make the business viable on a long-term basis has required the intervention of Administrators.”
The appointment followed “well-publicised internal disputes amongst board members” and pressure from creditors.
The company is continuing to trade and there is “no disruption in the process of transferring donations to the Charities”. The administrators reported that “efforts are being made to shorten the time frame between the donation being made and the funds being paid to the charities.”
Restructuring plan
Jeremy Frost, Director of Frost Group Ltd, said: “GoodBox Co are an essential part of the funding infrastructure within the charitable industry. Their IT systems allow valuable donations to reach much-needed charities. It is therefore essential that they can continue their great work.”
He added: “We are hopeful that a restructuring plan will allow the company to survive and ensure the next round of funding can be secured. We are working with various parties to secure a positive outcome, one which continues to allow charities across the UK to receive valuable donations.”
He also stated that “all client monies are and will remain safe and they are hopeful of a positive outcome for all parties involved.”
The firm will continue voluntarily to safeguard funds as a requirement set out in regulation 23 of the Payment Services Regulations 2017.
- Contactless donations points installed across London to help homeless people (4 December 2018)
- GoodBox contactless devices hit milestone of one million donations (17 June 2021)
- GoodBox Co generates £1 mn for charities while in administration (24 August 2022)
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.