Gift Processing

Getting Started

Set up Chariot to unify your offline gift processing

This guide will walk you through setting up Chariot to start receiving and processing offline donations from multiple sources.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, you’ll need:

  • A verified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
  • EIN (Employer Identification Number)
  • Authorized officer or director to complete onboarding

Step 1: Create Your Chariot Account

1

Sign Up

Visit givechariot.com and click “Get Started” to create your nonprofit account.

You’ll need to be a control person for the organization to claim the account.

2

Complete Verification

Chariot will verify your nonprofit status and may collect additional information.

This verification process typically takes 3-10 business days.

Chariot verifies nonprofit eligibility and control person identification to ensure compliance with banking regulations and prevent fraud.

3

Access Your Dashboard

Once approved, you’ll receive access to your Chariot Dashboard where you can:

  • View all incoming donations
  • Manage Payment Sources
  • Generate and manage API keys
  • Export data to your systems

Step 2: Set Up Payment Sources

Payment Sources provide segregated addresses (electronic or physical) for receiving donations from different sources.

Electronic Payment Sources provide unique bank account and routing numbers for receiving ACH transfers.

Use cases:

  • Dedicated payment source for Fidelity Charitable grants
  • Dedicated payment source for PayPal Giving Fund distributions
  • Dedicated payment source for workplace giving platforms, e.g. Benevity

How to set up:

  1. Log into your Chariot Dashboard
  2. Navigate to “Payment Sources”
  3. Click on a Payment Source and follow the instructions to connect it.

Lockbox Payment Sources provide physical mailing addresses for processing checks and physical mail.

Use cases:

  • Dedicated PO Box for direct mail campaigns
  • Dedicated address for major DAF sponsors that mail checks
  • Consolidated check processing from multiple sources

How to set up:

  1. Contact Chariot support to enable lockbox services
  2. Chariot will provision a dedicated mailing address
  3. Configure processing rules (appeal codes, etc.)
  4. Update your portal and/or donor communications with the new address

Checks mailed to your lockbox are automatically deposited and the donation data is captured in Chariot.

Lockbox services may incur additional fees. Contact support@givechariot.com for pricing.

Step 3: Retrieve Donations

Once donations start flowing in, you can retrieve them via API.

1

List Recent Donations

Retrieve donations filtered by Payment Source, date range, or Deposit:

GET
/v1/donations
1curl -G https://api.givechariot.com/v1/donations \
2     -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" \
3     -d payment_source_id=payment_source_01j8rs605a4gctmbm58d87mvsj \
4     -d deposit_id=deposit_01j8rs605a4gctmbm58d87mvsj
Try it
2

Get Detailed Donation Information

Retrieve a specific donation with all attribution and metadata:

GET
/v1/donations/:id
1curl https://api.givechariot.com/v1/donations/donation_01j8rs605a4gctmbm58d87mvsj \
2     -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>"
Try it
3

Sync data with your systems (CRM, accounting, etc.)

Use the donations data to:

  • Create constituent records in your CRM
  • Update donor acknowledgment systems
  • Reconcile with your accounting system

You can also use Properties to extend donation data with your own custom fields:

POST
/v1/properties/:id/assign
1curl -X POST https://api.givechariot.com/v1/properties/property_01j8rs605a4gctmbm58d87mvsj/assign \
2     -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" \
3     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
4     -d '{
5  "value": {
6    "type": "text"
7  },
8  "resources": {
9    "ids": [
10      "donation_01j8rs605a4gctmbm58d87mvsj"
11    ]
12  }
13}'
Try it

This allows you to:

  • Map to your CRM’s custom fields
  • Track internal campaign codes
  • Add processing notes
  • Maintain audit trails

Step 4: Configure Webhooks (Optional)

For real-time notification of new donations:

1

Create an Event Subscription

Subscribe to donation events to receive webhooks:

POST
/v1/event_subscriptions
1import { ChariotClient, Chariot } from "@chariot-giving/typescript-sdk";
2
3const client = new ChariotClient({ token: "YOUR_TOKEN" });
4await client.eventSubscriptions.create({
5    url: "https://example.com/webhook",
6    category: Chariot.EventCategory.GrantCreated
7});
Try it
2

Subscribe to Key Events

Important events for gift processing:

  • donation.created - New donation received
  • donation.updated - Donation details updated
  • deposit.completed - Deposit settled to your account
  • deposit.returned - Deposit was returned/rejected
3

Process Webhooks

When you receive a webhook, you can:

  • Automatically create CRM records
  • Trigger thank you emails
  • Update your accounting system
  • Flag for manual review if needed

Need Help?

If you have questions or need assistance setting up Chariot:

Chariot is a financial technology company, not a bank. Chariot Accounts come with a Demand Deposit Account through our banking services partner, Column N.A., Member FDIC. Deposits in Chariot Accounts are eligible for FDIC insurance up to $250,000 per depositor, for each insurable capacity in which the account is held.