The trust is intended to support the poor and \u201cmissing middle\u201d students, those who should be assisted by government and other interventions, but who have fallen through the cracks in those systems.<\/p>\n
The bank has covered the set-up costs for Feenix and has committed to whatever shortfall there is between the total operating costs and the income received from the admin fee charged to funders.<\/p>\n
Further, Standard Bank has said that it is committed to the project for 36 months, or until the project is self-sustaining.<\/p>\n
\n
How it works\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/College-university-fund-savings.png\")
<\/a><\/h3>\nStudents can\u00a0register their financial needs for the current year on\u00a0Feenix.org. The platform then exposes that student’s profile to a variety of funding sources including ordinary South Africans wishing to fund student fees.<\/p>\n
These donors can search for individual students on the platform and pay the whole, or a portion of their fees.<\/p>\n
Corporates wishing to contribute can also donate to the pool which is allocated to students in accordance with the socio-economic development bracket of the B-BBEE charter.<\/p>\n
Using a written profile, video and images, a student can motivate for funding from the public by showcasing what makes them unique and sharing that with the world. The trust also does not compete with merit-based scholarships or industry-based bursaries.<\/p>\n
“The idea is to provide all the benefits of donating funds to education, without the administrative burden of administering a bursary programme,” said Naidoo.<\/p>\n
“The Fundular platform, on which Feenix.org is built, keeps track of students over time and provides detailed analytics in annual reports.”<\/p>\n
\u201cFeenix\u2019s powerful database tracks all user behaviour and enables all financial activity through the site. The log of payments received and disbursed is stored securely, and allows for a full financial audit to be performed at any time or if any irregularity is suspected,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSteps have been taken to ensure that all users of the system (students and funders) are checked and verified against relevant databases made available to Feenix by Standard Bank\u2019s fraud protection and sanctions departments.\u201d<\/p>\n
Further, all funds are managed by Standard Trust Limited, the corporate trustee. Funds raised and managed are paid directly to the universities, so there is no opportunity for students or funders to withdraw funds to use them for anything other than their intended purpose.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/a><\/h3>\nStudents can\u00a0register their financial needs for the current year on\u00a0Feenix.org. The platform then exposes that student’s profile to a variety of funding sources including ordinary South Africans wishing to fund student fees.<\/p>\n
These donors can search for individual students on the platform and pay the whole, or a portion of their fees.<\/p>\n
Corporates wishing to contribute can also donate to the pool which is allocated to students in accordance with the socio-economic development bracket of the B-BBEE charter.<\/p>\n
Using a written profile, video and images, a student can motivate for funding from the public by showcasing what makes them unique and sharing that with the world. The trust also does not compete with merit-based scholarships or industry-based bursaries.<\/p>\n
“The idea is to provide all the benefits of donating funds to education, without the administrative burden of administering a bursary programme,” said Naidoo.<\/p>\n
“The Fundular platform, on which Feenix.org is built, keeps track of students over time and provides detailed analytics in annual reports.”<\/p>\n
\u201cFeenix\u2019s powerful database tracks all user behaviour and enables all financial activity through the site. The log of payments received and disbursed is stored securely, and allows for a full financial audit to be performed at any time or if any irregularity is suspected,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSteps have been taken to ensure that all users of the system (students and funders) are checked and verified against relevant databases made available to Feenix by Standard Bank\u2019s fraud protection and sanctions departments.\u201d<\/p>\n
Further, all funds are managed by Standard Trust Limited, the corporate trustee. Funds raised and managed are paid directly to the universities, so there is no opportunity for students or funders to withdraw funds to use them for anything other than their intended purpose.<\/p>\n
\n