Fidelity Charitable donors recommend $1 billion in grants in record time

BOSTON, March 28, 2018—Charities have received a record-breaking $1 billion across more than 221,000 donor-recommended grants made by Fidelity Charitable, an independent public charity and the nation's second-largest grantmaker. The $1 billion in grants represents a 42 percent increase in dollars granted compared to the same period in 2017.

The grants in 2018 benefited more than 62,000 charities. In total, Fidelity Charitable has made more than $30 billion in donor-recommended grants to nonprofits since its inception in 1991, including $4.5 billion in 2017.

“The extraordinary generosity of our donors, old and new, continues to humble us at Fidelity Charitable,” said Elaine Martyn, Vice President and Managing Director, Private Donor Group, Fidelity Charitable. “Our mission is to grow philanthropy by making giving accessible, simple and effective, and this exceptional benchmark helps us know that we are on the right track in meeting it.”

Fidelity Charitable donors are on pace to drive another record-breaking year in charitable giving. After experiencing a 20 percent increase in new Giving Accounts in 2017, Fidelity Charitable's granting is outpacing this growth. Additionally, grant volumes are also up, with a 25 percent increase in the total number of grants issued compared to a year ago.

“Donor-advised funds allow donors to plan strategically and efficiently create the greatest impact for the causes they care most about. This milestone illustrates that Americans are increasingly aware of the vehicle's benefits to support those causes,” said Martyn.

As Fidelity Charitable's donor base continues to grow, it increasingly reflects the giving priorities of the broader American public. As with years past, education and religious nonprofits received the most grant dollars, while religious and human services charities received the largest number of grants.