The Super-Rich Are Stockpiling Wealth in Black-Box Charities
- DAFs provide tax benefits and a bigger pool of money to donate
- Critics say these funds can create “warehouses of wealth”
The Paul Gaugin cruise ship.
Photographer: Sylvain Grandadam/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
It’s all the rage in charitable giving -- and it’s actually got some charities worried.
Donor-advised funds — money that grows tax-free in individual accounts — are reshaping the landscape of U.S. philanthropy. After creating their account, donors choose how it’s invested, and the money compounds until they decide where to dole it out. DAF assets mushroomed to more than $85 billion at the end of 2016 from $30 billion in 2010.