“Fine” said Mr Burns as he emptied his wallet, sending cash and credit cards tumbling into the money basket of Springfield Church. Usually a shyster of the first order, Burns felt that this was the only reasonable course of action after having been repeatedly prodded and pushed with the basket. His fellow churchgoers, having already had the basket pushed into their laps, had relinquished wads of cash and even a pearl bracelet, all to aid the church and the esteemed Reverend Lovejoy. 

It was there that Burns had an idea. 

An established and illustrious businessman, Burns’ business prowess helped him to identify an opportunity to capitalise on his benevolent fellow churchgoers and build a platform that allowed for the seamless movement of money and continued funding of the church, without being assailed by a pushy money basket bearer. And so, Pushpay (ASX: PPH) was born….?

Ok, that’s not where Pushpay originated from, but I have to imagine that someone sitting in a church having a donation basket thrust into their lap thought ‘there must be a better way’. (Also, as successful as Mr Burns was, we know he was rarely a church goer, preferring to use his Sundays to preside over his workers at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant.)

Pushpay’s donor management system includes donor and finance tools, a custom community app, a church management system and video streaming capabilities for religious institutions, non-profit organisations and education providers. 

Unsurprisingly, the service is predominantly used throughout the US where the pandemic has forced the faith sector to adapt with limited capacities and face to face activities. Pushpay aims to simplify engagement amongst churchgoers, facilitate payments and streamline admin, freeing up more time for fostering connection and community. 

The latest episcopate to join Pushpay as a customer is the Archdiocese of Seattle, Washington. The newest Catholic customer of Pushpay will be utilising ParishStaq, an “integrated technology platform to help parishes and dioceses increase engagement and grow their communities.”

“We are delighted to welcome the Archdiocese of Seattle to Pushpay,” said Pushpay CEO, Molly Matthews. “Bringing this wide-reaching community onboard represents a significant early milestone for Pushpay as we continue to execute towards our Catholic growth strategy. We are excited to be a part of their growth into the future as we continue to innovate and deliver technology that enables an integrated way for parishes and dioceses to engage with their community.”

The new business brings the opportunity to reach up to 174 parishes and over 600,000 Catholics in the region, also increasing brand awareness across other Catholic congregations and potentially attracting new business. 

For the 12 months ended 31 March, 2022, Pushpay had an annual revenue retention rate of over 100% and had processed over 36.9 million transactions, resulting in over USD $7 billion in church donations for their customers. The Company’s net profit after tax for the year was USD $33.4 million, up 7% on the prior year.