Advisors could be missing the chance to extend and improve relationships with their best clients, a Fidelity Charitable official said after a recent charity event.
Indeed, advisors wanting a deeper relationship with high-net-worth clients can do so by helping them set up a donor-advised fund (DAF), a service that many advisors are now offering, said Brian Deacy, vice president and national fundraising manager for Fidelity Charitable.
That’s because DAF assets are growing at a faster pace than contributions to private foundations, according to Fidelity Charitable officials at a recent Town & Country magazine philanthropy summit in Manhattan.
DAF funds have grown at a 3.1 percent rate since 2007, Fidelity officials said, compared to 1 percent for contributions to private foundations. Yet many advisors are overlooking the charitable bent of their clients.
Citing Bank of America numbers, Fidelity said advisors are missing an opportunity to serve clients: 95 percent of high-net-worth clients contribute to charity, yet only 14 percent of advisors include charitable planning as part of their wealth management conversations.
When advisors do discuss philanthropy with clients, 75 percent say they find discussing it “an excellent way to deepen relationships and establish new ones,” according to the Fidelity publication, Charitable Planning.
The benefits of the DAF, the Fidelity official added, are numerous. Often clients can give more to their charities and, at the same time, get a bigger tax break than if they had made contributions.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for the advisor,” said Deacy.
Since 2007, assets in DAFs managed by Fidelity Charitable have risen some 40 percent to $45 billion, according to National Philanthropic Trust.
“Helping set up a DAF is also a great way to connect to next generation. It can also broaden the relationship. The advisor becomes more than a wealth manager. He is helping the client do something that is very positive,” Deacy said.