More than £100m has been raised to date in the UK through eBay’s charitable arm, eBay for Charity, with £19m raised over the last year alone, according to figures published yesterday.

A total of 100,000 UK charities have benefitted from eBay for Charity funds, with some £39 raised every minute in the UK, a spokesperson for the organisation told Civil Society News.

According to eBay for Charity, mobile technology is proving a particularly popular way for sellers to give to charity – with over 150,000 charitable listings created in the UK using the eBay app.

A spokeswoman for eBay for Charity told Civil Society News, the organisation provides “an easy way for buyers and sellers to support their favourite charities”.

“Buyers can shop for items knowing they're supporting a good cause, while sellers - whether they're individuals businesses or charities - can donate a percentage from any sale to a charity of their choice and add Gift Aid to their donations,” the spokeswoman said.

Charities benefit from the funds if they are selected by individual eBay sellers - who are then able to decide what per cent of each sale they would like to go to charity. 

Items sold through eBay for Charity include more than 15,500 phones, tablets and laptops, raising over £2m for UK charities and 675 cars and bicycles, raising over £123,000.

“These listings drive awareness and have the potential to raise a lot of money for charities all over the UK,” the spokeswoman said.  

Charities with their own eBay shops include Sue Ryder, British Heart Foundation, CLIC Sargen and Sense.