How Tech Billionaires Hack Their Taxes With a Philanthropic Loophole
By David Gelles, The New York Times
Donor-advised funds, or D.A.F.s, allow wealthy individuals to give assets — usually cash and stock, but also real estate, art and cryptocurrencies — to a sponsoring organization like the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Fidelity Charitable or Vanguard Charitable. But while donors part ways with their money, they don’t give up control. The sponsoring organizations make grants to hospitals, schools and the like only at a donor’s request. So while donors enjoy immediate tax benefits, charities can wait for funds indefinitely, and maybe forever.
For these reasons and more, D.A.F.s have become one of the most controversial issues in the charitable world.
