Covid-19: GoDaddy joins Ketto to support Indian SMEs

Domain registration and web hosting giant GoDaddy on Saturday announced a partnership with crowdfunding platform Ketto to help Indian businesses hit by Covid-19 disruptions to host a fundraiser campaign for free.

As part of this initiative, a small business based in India, with a website holding an active .in, .co.in, org.in, net.in or IND.in domain name, can apply to start a crowdfunding campaign on Ketto to support their business.

GoDaddy will work with Ketto to evaluate the applications based on a set of eligibility criteria.

On average, Ketto charges a commission of five per cent as platform success fee and subsequent three per cent payment gateway fee on the total funds raised by each fundraiser.

As a result of GoDaddy's partnership with Ketto, the small businesses will get the opportunity to host a fundraiser on Ketto for free, without paying any intermediate fee.

GoDaddy said it will incur these fee expenses on behalf of eligible small businesses, for combined funds raised up to Rs 2 crore.

"GoDaddy will work with Ketto and shortlist the applications basis a set eligibility criteria, and help these entrepreneurs and small business owners get financial aid to not just support their business goals but also their employee base," Nikhil Arora, Managing Director and Vice President, GoDaddy India, told IANS in an interview.

"By joining forces with Ketto, we have made our first step in trying to bring some financial relief their way," Arora said.

Enabling easier access for GoDaddy customers, Ketto's landing page will be highlighted on GoDaddy's #OpenWeStand India website.

#OpenWeStand is GoDaddy's global initiative which supports small business owners across the world navigate the challenging times presented by COVID-19, with special offers on services and tools, expert advice, and community for entrepreneurs to share insights and experiences with one another.

Over 70 companies have joined in support of #OpenWeStand and pledged action to make a difference together by contributing their expert advice, services, and special offers to help ease the financial stress caused by the ongoing health crisis.

"Ketto has already raised over rs 100 crore to help fight the coronavirus pandemic. Having GoDaddy onboard will allow us to reach out to many local businesses in India and enable them to raise funds to help ensure sustainability in the mid to long term," said Kunal Kapoor, Bollywood actor and Co-Founder of Ketto.

"Today, local businesses stand impacted by this global pandemic, and it is essential to assist them to the best of our capacity, helping them rebuild and re-establish their business identity."