Penny

A penny is a coin (pl. pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (whence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is the formal name of the British penny (abbr. p) and the informal name of the American and Irish cents (abbr. ¢ and c, respectively). It is the informal name of the cent unit of account in Canada, although one cent coins are no longer minted in that country. The name is also used in reference to various historical currencies also derived from the Carolingian system, such as the French denier and the German pfennig. It may also be informally used to refer to any similar smallest-denomination coin, such as the euro cent or Chinese fen.

The Carolingian penny was originally a .940-fine silver coin weighing 1/240 pound. It was adopted by Offa of Mercia and other English kings and remained the principal currency in Europe over the next few centuries until repeated debasements necessitated the development of more valuable coins. The British penny remained a silver coin until the expense of the Napoleonic Wars prompted the use of base metals in 1797. Despite the decimalization of currencies in the United States and, later, throughout the British Commonwealth, the name remains in informal use.

Pennies (digital charity box)

Pennies, the digital charity box is a micro-donation scheme in the United Kingdom, created by registered charity The Pennies Foundation. Its purpose is to raise funds for a variety of UK registered charities. The Daily Telegraph has described it as "a new channel for an old habit" that has adapted the shop counter charity box for the internet and card using generation.

Operation

Shoppers are privately invited to donate small amounts (1p–99p) to charity when they pay for goods and services by card in participating retailers. All the money raised through Pennies goes to charity. Pennies’ partner retailers nominate the charity or charities to benefit from donations. In January 2013, just over two years after launch, people had donated 4 million times through Pennies, raising £1,000,000 for charity. As of September 2015, over 20 million consumer donations had been made through the digital charity box.

Retailers that have customers paying by card can easily implement Pennies on their payment system. Those with electronic stock control software set up Pennies as a stock-keeping unit. Sales staff are not involved in donations; when the customer is ready to pay for goods or services, the PIN pad prompts the customer with the option to round up or top up their purchase and add a donation to the payment.