How Your Clients Can Make the Most of Their DAF

Your clients’ philanthropic efforts come in many shapes and sizes. Some donors plan to support one charity with strategic grantmaking over time, while others will fund a wide array of charitable causes or respond quickly to a global crisis. Your clients may be focused on using philanthropy to bring their family together around shared values, whereas others will want to encourage their children to find their own path with charitable giving. Whatever the approach, it is efficient and effective for your clients to use a donor-advised fund (DAF). Here are some of the ways you can help your clients make the most of their DAF: 

Encourage your clients to have charitable goals: A charitable giving strategy will help your clients use their DAF more effectively and help clarify where and when they want to give. 

Help your clients determine how much they plan to grant to charities each year: Your clients may want to list the charities they want to support over the year. It is a good idea to consider the timing of grant recommendations to schedule recurring grants in advance. 

Assess whether your clients have adequately funded their DAF: Once you know how much philanthropic capital your clients will put aside, consider what assets make the most sense to give. 

Help your clients allocate investments: Just as your clients periodically review asset allocations in their investment accounts, make sure they have recommended the right investment allocation for their DAF account. Some of your clients may turn to impact investing as a powerful way to achieve both social impact and financial return. 

With as many ways to give as there are worthy causes, there is no such thing as “one size fits all” for your clients’ philanthropy. A DAF allows as much flexibility as your clients need and offers an efficient solution for their charitable giving. For more information about how NPT UK can support your clients’ giving, contact us.  

NPT UK does not provide legal or tax advice. This blog post is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be, and shall not be relied upon as, legal or tax advice. The applicability of information contained here may vary depending on individual circumstances.

About the Author

Natalie Pinon is Executive Director, Development at NPT UK. She has over 15 years of experience working with philanthropists and impact investors to manage their giving.