20 October 2026 · The Entrypoint team
The PRO gets excited about the fundraiser; the treasurer signs off on it. If that's you, this guide covers the questions that matter before your club moves fundraising online: where the money sits, how it reconciles, what it costs, and what the auditor (and the AGM) will want to see.
This is the question that separates platforms. There are two models. In the wallet model, entry money accumulates in an account the platform controls, and the club requests a payout later. That introduces counterparty risk (what if the platform fails while holding your funds?), payout delays, and an extra reconciliation layer. In the direct model, payments are processed straight into an account in the club's own name — on Entrypoint this is Stripe-direct: each entry settles into the club's Stripe account and onward to the club bank account on Stripe's normal cycle. The platform never holds club money.
Whichever platform you evaluate, ask it plainly: if you disappeared tomorrow, where would our money be? If the answer isn't "in your own account," scrutinise further.
For a competition fundraiser, you want three things to tie out: entries recorded, payments received, and fees deducted. A good platform gives you a per-entry export (name, amount, date, fee) that your bank statement matches line-for-line or as daily settlements. Practical tips: run one competition per bank purpose (don't mingle a development-fund competition with general fundraising in one pot); download the entry report the day entries close, not months later; and record the gross-fee-net split in your accounts rather than just the net lodgement, so the AGM sees the full picture.
Compare platforms on the same line items: platform fee (Entrypoint's starts at 10% of entries and drops to 7.5% past 50 entries), card processing (typically ~1.5% + €0.25 plus VAT per transaction), setup and monthly charges (should be zero for club platforms), and payout charges. Then compute one number: cents kept per euro entered. A "cheap" platform with a monthly subscription beats a percentage fee only at scales most clubs never reach; a percentage-only model means a failed fundraiser costs nothing. And price in volunteer hours — a treasurer chasing cash and cheques for 150 manual entries is a real cost, just an invisible one. What clubs keep in practice →
Before launch: committee minute approving the fundraiser, its purpose, and the prize. Two people with access to the platform account (never one — holidays and hard drives happen). Written rules published to entrants — for skill competitions our free rules sheet covers it; for any draw or raffle, confirm your permit/registration position (IE Gaming and Lotteries Act 2019; UK small society lottery rules — general information, not legal advice). After it ends: report the result to members — total raised, prize paid, what the funds did. Clubs that close the loop raise more next time.
Where do funds settle, and in whose name? What's the full fee stack on a €10 entry? Can I export every transaction? Who handles entrant payment disputes? What happens to member data (GDPR applies in both IE and UK)? Is there a setup or monthly cost if the fundraiser flops?
If you're weighing formats as well as platforms, start with which fundraiser fits your club, or see how the money flows on Entrypoint.