While article processing charges (APCs) are emerging as a key way in which existing publishers can adapt to gold open access (OA), this mode is problematic in many ways. Considering the existing subscription publication ecosystem as a risk/cost-pooling mechanism leads to the conclusion that APCs are a concentration of risk that may come with damaging institutional consequences, particularly in the humanities disciplines. Consortial and co-operative modes of funding gold OA, however, do not come with these drawbacks but are susceptible to ‘free riders’. In this article, the theoretical backdrop to these models is addressed and the range of current offerings evaluated. Noting that classical economic incentives do not seem to operate in a world of inter-library loans, the article ends with a description of the model that is being implemented for the Open Library of Humanities initiative, funded by the Andrew W Mellon Foundation.