FoundationMark models indicate that U.S. foundations’ assets rose by about $100 billion, or about 7.7%, in the fourth quarter of 2023 pushing assets to a record $1.5 trillion.
Foundation asset levels are a function of three variables: incoming contributions, outgoing grants and expenses, and investment performance. The Grantmaker Investment Value (“GIV”) Index was up 17.3% in 2023, correspondingly investment performance accounted for most of the gain with the balance comprised of outflows for grants and expenses somewhat offset by new contributions.
New contributions since 2020 have been historically strong, but contributions can be volatile, we forecast incoming contribution to be above the ten year average.
*The data in the chart above combines historic information drawn from foundations’ reported asset levels and disbursements obtained from their annual tax filings, along with projected values based on the FoundationMark Grantmaker Investment Value (“GIV”) Index which estimates monthly returns for the foundation universe based on reported asset allocations and market returns. Gifts, grants, and operating expenses projections are based on historic disbursement ranges.