Donors Trust

Donors Trust
Formation1999
TypeNonprofit (IRC § 501(c)(3))[1]
52-2166327
Location
Coordinates38°48′20″N 77°03′37″W / 38.8056°N 77.0603°W / 38.8056; -77.0603
ServicesDonor-advised fund
CEO
Lawson Bader[2]
AffiliationsDonors Capital Fund
Revenue (2022)
$323 million[4]
Expenses (2022)$248 million[4]
Endowment$1.39 billion
Websitedonorstrust.org Edit this at Wikidata

Donors Trust is an American nonprofit donor-advised fund. It was founded in 1999 with the goal of "safeguarding the intent of libertarian and conservative donors".[5] As a donor advised fund, Donors Trust is not legally required to disclose the identity of its donors, and most of its donors remain anonymous.[6][7] It distributes funds to various conservative and libertarian organizations, and has been characterized as the "dark money ATM" of the political right.[6][8][9]: 1

It is affiliated with Donors Capital Fund, another donor-advised fund. In September 2015, Lawson Bader was announced as the new president of both Donors Trust and Donors Capital Fund. Bader was formerly president of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and Vice President at the Mercatus Center.[2]

  1. ^ "2017 IRS 990 FORM". Archived from the original on April 23, 2020. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "DonorsTrust's New CEO". Donors Trust. September 22, 2015. Archived from the original on February 3, 2016. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  3. ^ "Directors & Staff - DonorsTrust". Donors Trust. Archived from the original on November 30, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "DONORS TRUST INC". May 9, 2013. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  5. ^ Callahan, David (March 3, 2016). "Inside DonorsTrust: What This Mission-Driven DAF Offers Philanthropists on the Right". Inside Philanthropy. Archived from the original on April 28, 2016. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  6. ^ a b Kroll, Andy (February 5, 2013). "Exposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  7. ^ Callahan, David (August 23, 2017). "Inside DonorsTrust: What This Mission-Driven DAF Offers Philanthropists on the Right". Inside Philanthropy. Archived from the original on August 30, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  8. ^ SLODYSKO, Brian (July 27, 2020). "Wealthy donors pour millions into fight over mail-in voting". Minneapolis Tribune. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved November 20, 2020. A substantial portion of the financing comes from Donors Trust, a nonprofit often referred to as the "dark money ATM" of the conservative movement. The organization helps wealthy patrons invest in causes they care about while sheltering their identities from the public.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Guardian_20200527 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).