{"id":270495,"date":"2025-10-02T00:12:20","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T00:12:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/270495\/"},"modified":"2025-10-02T00:12:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T00:12:20","slug":"how-a-dallas-immigrant-founder-is-powering-billions-in-giving-dallas-innovates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/270495\/","title":{"rendered":"How\u00a0a Dallas Immigrant Founder Is Powering Billions in\u00a0Giving \u00bb Dallas Innovates"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Left: Givelify Co-Founder and CEO Wale Mafolasire. Right: Mafolasire and his team at the Stevie Awards. [Photos: Givelify]<\/p>\n

Could passing the offering basket become a thing of the past in places of worship? Can nonprofits rely on a third-party app to handle fundraising with one click? Givelify, a leading online and mobile giving platform, is doing its best to realize both. And it says that Dallas-Fort Worth alone has now surpassed $300 million in donations by using its services.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, Givelify is led by Dallas-based co-founder and CEO Wale Mafolasire, a Nigerian immigrant who moved from Indiana to Dallas in 2017. While the company previously had a physical office in Dallas, today 20% of Givelify\u2019s team now works remotely from the Dallas area, a spokesperson told Dallas Innovates.<\/p>\n

Givelify says it has a global community of nearly two million people who use its app to support their favorite churches, places of worship, nonprofits, and causes. Since the company\u2019s launch in 2014, it reports that over $6 billion has been donated through its platform globally, with more than two million donors supporting 75,000 nonprofits and places of worship. Givelify said it leads all giving apps on the App Store and Google Play Store, with more than 104,000 verified, authentic reviews with an average 4.9 out of 5-star rating.<\/p>\n

Why Dallas-Fort Worth is a key hub for Givelify<\/p>\n

Givelify said Dallas has become a key hub for its growth and impact, thanks to \u201cits large faith communities, thriving tech corridor, rich talent pipeline, and entrepreneurial spirit.\u201d More than 1,500 places of worship and nonprofits in the DFW metro area can receive donations through its platform, the company said.<\/p>\n

That $300 million DFW figure noted above? It was contributed via 2.8 million gifts from 80,000 donors since Givelify\u2019s founding.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could have gone to San Francisco or Austin,\u201d CEO Mafolasire said in a statement about his company\u2019s particular focus on DFW, and his own move to Dallas eight years ago. \u201cBut Dallas offered something different: more diversity, and more opportunity to build a company that truly reflects the people we serve. Dallas has secured its spot as an innovation hub with a rich talent pool and a vibrant startup community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dallas-Fort Worth ranks among Givelify\u2019s top five U.S. markets by giving volume, with local organizations receiving more than nearly every other city nationwide, just behind Washington, D.C. ($350 million), Atlanta ($332 million), and New York City ($310 million). In addition, DFW is No. 2 nationwide in the number of gifts and donors supporting local organizations, second only to Atlanta, the company said.<\/p>\n

\u201cChoosing Dallas was intentional,\u201d he added, \u201cand as we continue to double down on diversity, equity, and inclusion, we\u2019re proud that one of the most impactful giving platforms in the world is thriving right here.\u201d<\/p>\n

CEO bootstrapped the company after having no cash at a service offering<\/p>\n

Mafolasire was inspired to launch Givelify by his own experience of wanting to give at church when he didn\u2019t have any cash on hand. He bootstrapped the company\u2014at one point even selling his car to raise funds\u2014and eventually turned Givelify into one of America\u2019s leading giving platforms for places of worship and nonprofits.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t the co-founder\u2019s first entrepreneurial story. Writing<\/a> on LinkedIn, he notes that as a college student, he always needed tutoring outside of class. \u201cSo I created varsitylounge.com, an online learning\/collaboration platform.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI find opportunities where they don\u2019t seem to exist and deliver solutions,\u201d he adds. \u201cSomewhere along the line, I became fascinated with servers and corporate networks and how they impact bottom lines, so I created Control-Z and delivered best-of-class IT consulting services to the Indianapolis area. I hooked up with Didgebridge a few years ago to deliver the world\u2019s first patent-pending Video ROI analytics platform.\u201d<\/p>\n

And after forgetting to honor his pledges to a few non-profits and missing out on tithes and offerings at his church, he co-founded Givelify.<\/p>\n

To help shape how the platform worked, Mafolasire says he visited hundreds of churches across the U.S., observing how congregations respond during calls for offerings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Powerered by AI, with tiered badges and haptic feedback<\/p>\n

Givelify said its latest tech innovation, Champions of Good, helps donors grow in faith and become consistent givers. Powered by AI, the solution \u201cdelivers a joyful and inspiring giving experience through personalized insights, recognition, tiered badges (from Silver to Diamond), streaks, and haptic feedback,\u201d the company said. The program has already doubled the number of consistent givers from 18% to 37%, enhancing impact in Dallas and beyond, Givelify added. The technology recently won a Gold Stevie Award for Best User Experience. (The Steve Awards is a leading business awards program created in 2002 to honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals worldwide.)<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is about more than technology. It\u2019s about people and our communities,\u201d Mafolasire said. \u201cWe built Givelify to help people give to the causes that matter most to them and to cultivate consistent giving habits that bring lasting impact. Our platform lets you experience the joy of giving the moment your heart is moved. DFW shows us what\u2019s possible when generosity becomes a way of life, shining through all year and even more so during giving season.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Mafolasire says \u201cwhat\u2019s possible\u201d goes beyond mere numbers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you look at the numbers, what\u2019s remarkable isn\u2019t just how much is given, but how deeply Dallas gives,\u201d Mafolasire said. \u201cThe city is growing fast, but its generosity is growing even faster. Dallas is a city with a big heart, and that spirit shines through every day on Givelify.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quincy Preston contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

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