Charities unable to pay staff after fraud alert

Charitable organizations across the South East are facing significant apprehension regarding their ability to compensate staff and suppliers, as they have been cut off from their digital banking platforms. This predicament arises as payday approaches, leaving numerous good causes feeling helpless.

CAF Bank, headquartered in West Malling, Kent, and serving over 14,000 non-profit entities throughout the UK, announced that its online services have been suspended since July 24. This suspension follows reports of suspected cyber fraud. The disruption has consequently hindered some charities' capacity to manage crucial operations, including payroll. An example is 21 Together, a Maidstone-based charity assisting individuals with Down's syndrome.

Kevan Hodges, Chief Executive of 21 Together, who oversees a team of 13 education specialists and part-time employees, characterized the situation as "appalling." He stated, "People are concerned that wages won't get paid because of this, and that's just stressful when they have bills to pay." Hodges added that his team "wasted days trying to get through to (CAF Bank), but all in vain." He further explained that upon finally reaching a representative at the bank, which is owned by the Charities Aid Foundation, they were instructed to complete an online form that "would be looked at tomorrow."

Other individuals have also expressed their dissatisfaction, including Bali Rodgers, Chief Executive of Safer Communities Alliance. Rodgers, who collaborates with numerous grassroots charities, conveyed her anger regarding the situation. She remarked, "It's just not good enough." Rodgers noted, "Many of the grassroots organisations I represent - churches, YMCAs, vets - have CAF as their bank, but they are slowly losing trust in it." She also stated that she had received "no reassurance" from the bank concerning the current situation, and any information provided had been "very inconsistent." Rodgers lamented, "It's especially sad that this has happened in the summer when lots of extra projects are up and running." She concluded, "People are unable to access their own money and have been left feeling powerless - it makes me really angry."

In a statement, Chief Executive Alison Taylor offered an apology, saying, "I am very sorry for the disruption this has caused for our customers." She confirmed, "On Monday we informed them that the online banking service will be unavailable until further notice." Taylor explained, "We are working with external experts to fix an issue we identified with third-party software related to our online banking portal. Importantly, the core bank is not affected." She further added, "We appreciate how difficult this is for our customers and want this to be resolved as quickly as possible, but we cannot restore access until we are assured the issue is safely resolved." Taylor assured customers, "We are still able to support as extra teams are available on the phone, and we are prioritising time-sensitive payments such as payroll."