Wells Fargo permits charity via its ATMs

NEW YORK - It's possible to get cash, check balances, and even make payments at ATMs. Now customers at Wells Fargo & Co. can also donate to help victims of the Japan earthquake.

The San Francisco-based bank - which bought Wachovia Corp. in 2008 and is transforming Wachovia branches in the Philadelphia area into Wells Fargo branches - says it has the only ATM network in the country that lets customers donate to charities.

The details. After hitting a "Donate to Charity" button, customers are prompted to select the account they want to draw from and punch in the amount they want to give.

Customers can give as little as a penny and as much as $249.99. The cap is in place to minimize headaches. Wells Fargo would have to collect personal information to report to the Internal Revenue Service for donations of $250 or more.

But customers can donate as often as they like.

All proceeds go to the American Red Cross Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Fund, and there is no fee for making a donation. Customers are given a separate donation receipt for tax purposes.

The donation option is not available for noncustomers who use Wells Fargo ATMs.

The background. Wells Fargo, which has more than 9,000 ATMs, made the option to donate to the Japan earthquake fund available two weeks ago. In just 10 days, customers donated more than $1 million. The bank says customers will be able to donate at least through the end of the month.

Wells Fargo has deployed its ATM donation option regionally in the past to raise money for local disaster-relief efforts. But this marks its first national campaign.