GoFundMe expands into Mexico as part of for-profit crowdfunding platform's international growth

abcnews.go.com:

GoFundMe is expanding into Mexico, the company announced Tuesday

NEW YORK — Mexican fundraisers can now solicit donations on GoFundMe, the company announced Tuesday, as the crowdfunding giant expands into what it hopes is the first of more untapped Latin American markets to follow.

Mexico marks the 20th country serviced by GoFundMe. The for-profit platform is eyeing new international targets now that the unprecedented strain of crowdfunding campaign levels spawned by COVID-19 has eased to pre-pandemic figures, CEO Tim Cadogan told The Associated Press.

Mexico's status as one of the world's largest 15 economies and a close U.S. partner made it a logical fit, said Cadogan, as did on-the-ground interest evidenced by high search volume for GoFundMe and user attempts to establish in-country campaigns.

The company finds that its generally popular appeals for help with medical expenses and emergency aid are also common in Mexico — a country with relatively high out-of-pocket healthcare expenditures and a history of severe natural disasters.

Cadogan pointed to Category 5 Hurricane Otis' deadly touchdown last fall on the southern Pacific coast and the resort city of Acapulco. The GoFundMe community raised about $1.5 million to help recovery and rebuilding efforts, Cadogan said. But Mexicans themselves could not launch campaigns.

“If we had been available then, I think more people would have been able to avail themselves of the service," Cadogan said.

Mexico remains a country where about half the population lives in poverty, and where any unexpected expense — most often medical, but also related to events as terrifying as kidnapping or extortion — can prompt appeals for funds.

United States users had previously circumvented the