Overall charitable giving increased 27 percent in 2021, buoyed in large part by continuing strength in financial markets with philanthropic activity returning to pre-pandemic trends, a report from BNY Mellon Wealth Management finds.

Based on an analysis of the BNY Mellon Charitable Gift Fund—BNY’s nonprofit host for individual donor-advised funds (DAFs)—as well as annuity and trust activity for 101 nonprofit organizations, the report, 2022 Charitable Gift Report (38 pages, PDF), found that despite lingering effects of the pandemic, incipient inflation, and economic uncertainty, the fund received record contributions of $136.4 million in 2021—the fund reported assets of $235 million in 2020. Overall, the number of charitable gifts increased 10 percent and the average gift size increased 15 percent.

New donors slightly outnumbered repeat donors (51 percent to 49 percent) and on average made gifts that were nearly 19 percent larger, which the report suggests may reflect lower balances or donor fatigue for existing clients following the unprecedented scale and scope of grant activity in 2020. Gifts of more than $100,000 represented 29 percent of the total number of gifts in 2021, but accounted for 85 percent of total giving. In addition, the report found that older donors have taken the lead in making the largest average gifts, which aligns with recent findings by Dunham+Company.

While BNY saw a 33 percent increase in the creation of new trusts, described as “a slight uptick,” the report noted that overall, total giving from trusts decreased, while total dollar additions to trusts was down by 50 percent—a sign of the diminishing long-term interest in traditional trusts. DAFs are now the preferred philanthropic vehicle among BNY clients—31 percent compared to 26 percent for charitable trusts.

“During times of economic uncertainty, when capacity for charitable giving may be limited, donors with DAFs are well positioned to provide critical funding to nonprofits when it’s needed the most,” said Crystal Thompkins, head of philanthropic solutions at BNY Mellon Wealth Management. “The financial markets held strong in 2021, and the planned giving activity demonstrated how sustainable the giving increase in 2020 was—and even with the present market uncertainty, people don’t stop giving.”

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