Dear Supporters and Followers,
Although this fundraiser closed to donations on July 31, 2019, we stand in awe of your continued messages of love and generous support for Kyoto Animation during this difficult time. We sincerely appreciate all of your contributions to this drive as well as to other fundraising and support initiatives established by friends around the world.
Now it is time to start the process of sending those funds to Kyoto Animation.
We have been coordinating fund distribution with Kyoto Animation’s agent and lawyer, Mr. Daisuke Okeda. Mr. Okeda has directed us to deposit the funds received from this GoFundMe drive into an account established by Kyoto Animation to accept donations like these. Most importantly, Mr. Okeda has fully assured and committed that the donations contributed through this GoFundMe drive will all be utilized to support the victims of this tragedy and their families. We discuss that pledge in more detail below.
The transfer process has two phases, and each phase has two steps. This is because transactional standards require that funds from a US GoFundMe be deposited into a US bank account. GoFundMe has also advised us to reserve funds in the amount of $100,000 for final credit card settlement. Moreover, all funds withdrawn are subject to standard online transactional fees, which total $89,539.24.
Moving to the withdrawal phases, we will follow these steps.
This first phase will result in the overwhelming majority of funds moving to Kyoto Animation’s designated account. We will be withdrawing these funds ($2+ million) and leaving only the reserve with GoFundMe. The withdrawal will first arrive at a US-based account designated by Sentai to facilitate transfer to Kyoto Animation’s designated account in Japan. Immediately following receipt of funds from GoFundMe, Sentai will transfer 100% of the funds to Kyoto Animation’s designated account. We will initiate this phase tomorrow, Wednesday, August 21, 2019 (CDT), and we will update you through this page when it is completed.
The second and final phase is transfer of the reserve. This is scheduled for 90 days after the completion of phase one. The reserve will be reconciled and the remaining amount transferred on or about 90 days following the completion of phase one. We will follow the same transfer process as described for the first phase. We will update you through this page when it is completed.
We have requested a formal confirmation by Mr. Okeda of receipt of funds. He has committed to doing so, and we will share that message with you through this page.
After the funds reach Kyoto Animation’s specified account, representatives of Kyoto Animation will distribute them to those in need according to their public pledge to do so. More specifically, Kyoto Animation has pledged that any funds received from this GoFundMe drive will go toward providing aid for 1) their lost co-workers, as well as their family and immediate relatives, and 2) their colleagues who remain hospitalized, as well as their family and immediate relatives. They have further committed as follows: “We consider transparency regarding these funds to be of top priority, and we will be reporting all income and expenditures. We are still in the process of determining the best way to report this information, but we will make an announcement once this has been finalized.”
To receive further updates about Kyoto Animation, its members, and its plans for the distribution of funds, please visit their webpage:
京都アニメーションホームページ
Thank you all for your continued support of Kyoto Animation.