A former furniture company boss from Hendon is the driving force behind a digital platform that has enabled communal charities to raise £60million from crowdfunding events during the pandemic.

Yitzi Bude, 34, launched the Charity Extra website in October 2019. It snowballed during the first lockdown, which decimated all plans for annual charity dinners and other more traditional physical fundraisers.

Over the past year, the site has been responsible for a number of seven-figure online appeals, benefiting organisations ranging from Chai Cancer Care to the Community Security Trust, as well as schools, yeshivahs and hospices.

Mr Bude said he established the website as a fundraising alternative for the community, after becoming frustrated in his own charity efforts on behalf of a local boys’ school.

“We were looking for custom-made technology for our furniture business and took on a team of developers to build it,” he recalled.

“At the same time, I was involved in an online fundraiser where I wasn’t happy with many aspects. I just thought I now have this technology team and we could create something that offers a great service and is run morally.”

He had been inspired by the work of his late father, Mendy Bude, who had dedicated his life to supporting good causes.

“My dad was a lawyer and used to work pro bono for many charities, as well as being a trustee on many boards. I grew up listening to weekly charity meetings and seeing all the work he did for them.

“That instilled in me how important charities are to our community and how important it is to support them, even if they don’t touch your life directly.”

The website has now helped more than 150 Jewish charities with major fundraisers in the offing for organisations including Kisharon, Partnerships for Jewish Schools and the Zionist Federation, plus events for secular organisations and overseas institutions.

Some 515,000 individuals have donated and the London-based operation has grown to the point where it employs 15 people. As well as providing a technical platform, the business offers round-the-clock guidance for clients during their fundraisers.

The father-of-three quit the furniture business last year to run charityextra.com full-time and reports that it is currently hosting around ten fundraisers a week.

Mr Bude cited three ingredients for a successful fundraising campaign - limited time to donate, matching funders and volunteers to spread the word.

“We do all fundraisers in a very short amount of time, usually 36 hours, as building that excitement is critical.

“Most campaigns are now also matched. That’s where a charity goes out to its major funders and they agree to double the donations, often for the first £500,000 raised. People love it when they give £25 and, once it is matched and Gift Aid added, it shows up as £62.50. Indeed, the average donation is 30 per cent higher when there is a matching campaign.

“The final key element is having teams of volunteers spreading the word about the fundraiser to their friends and network. There is no better way of fundraising than through connections, because people give to people.”

He was unwilling to discuss details of how charities were charged, saying it depended on the campaign. But he stressed that he worked with clients to make events cost effective.

With the growing demand for his services, Mr Bude – a member of the Nishmas Yisroel Federation congregation - is certain that the new style of fundraising is here to stay, even when charities are once again able to hold in-person dinners and other physical fundraisers.

“There is no other way of reaching out to 10,000 plus donors in multiple locations and raising £2-3million, with very small costs involved,” he pointed out. “There just isn’t another solution.”