Three thousand charities have now joined the re-launched eBay for Charity programme, which has seen 300 charity sellers joining every day.

Seventy per cent of charity shops already use eBay, which has raised almost £3.5m for charity in 2008, including £770,000 in December alone. Since November 2008, £300,000 has been donated through a new tool developed by eBay and MissionFish, its charity partner. The tool enables shoppers to donate a pound to a featured charity when buying an item on the website.

“We’ve been working hard over the past year to make it easier for charities to receive payment through eBay. The value of donations has almost tripled since the re-launch, as more charities take advantage of the new platform. All UK charities should now be considering how to harness and benefit from eBay for Charity marketplace,” said Nick Aldridge, CEO of MissionFish.

A Charity Finance survey of charity shops found that 70% of charity shops trade on eBay, up from 45% two years ago. Leading charity shops raise over £100,000 per year on the website.