Podcast Summary: This is the Fastest Growing Trend in Fundraising Today

Nonprofit Leadership Podcast with Dr. Rob Harter
Guest: Mitch Stein (Head of Strategy at Chariot)
Date: February 15, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode explores the explosive growth of Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) and how nonprofit leaders can maximize their fundraising through this rapidly growing channel. Dr. Rob Harter is joined by Mitch Stein, a leading expert on DAFs from Chariot, a fintech company specializing in donor-advised fund payments. Mitch dives deep into the trends, best practices, prevalent misconceptions, and actionable strategies for nonprofit leaders who want to ride the wave of DAF-driven philanthropy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Current State & Rise of Donor Advised Funds

• Magnitude of Growth:
  • By the end of 2024, DAF assets reached $326 billion, with $65 billion granted to nonprofits in a single year.
  • DAF giving now accounts for roughly 20% of all charitable donations—an explosive growth rate of over 20% annually.

  "At the end of 2024, there was $326 billion in donor advised funds… the annual amount of grant making... reached $65 billion." — Mitch Stein [05:18]
  "About one in every five dollars donated to charity is coming from a donor advised fund." — Mitch Stein [06:14]

• Donor Motivations:
  • Organization & Simplicity: “It's so nice. I've got one place, I see all my gifts, I've got one tax receipt, I can manage everything from there.” — Mitch Stein [07:41]
  • Tax Efficiency: Full tax write-off in the year of contribution; additional benefits for donating appreciated assets.
  • Psychological Impact: Funds are set aside irrevocably for charity, leading to increased generosity.

  "Once it's in a DAF, it has to ultimately be used for giving. That changes your connection to that money... it results in them being more generous, more engaged in their giving." — Mitch Stein [08:27]

2. Addressing Common Misconceptions About DAFs

• Myths About Payout Rates & "Hoarding":
  • No federal minimum payout requirement for DAFs, leading to critique—but most sponsoring organizations have internal policies inducing generous, regular distributions.
  • Actual payout rates have consistently exceeded 20% (25% in 2024), much higher than the 5% required of private foundations.

  "The past almost 20 years… it’s shown the payout rate over 20% every year. I think this year it was around 25%." — Mitch Stein [12:56]

• Accessibility:
  • DAFs were once seen as tools only for the ultra-wealthy but are now open to anyone, even with minimum contributions as low as $18 and zero minimum balances.

  "This is not just a way to give for super wealthy people anymore... minimum gift sizes that are $18, zero minimum balance." — Mitch Stein [19:12]

• Data Over Perceptions:
  • Engage with the growing body of credible, independent research (e.g., DAF Research Collaborative, Chariot/K2D’s DAF Fundraising Report) to inform opinions.

3. Top Mistakes Nonprofits Make with DAFs

• Lack of Strategy:
  • Most nonprofits haven't even sat down as a team to discuss DAFs, let alone crafted a cohesive strategy.

  "The biggest mistake with DAF strategy is still not having one… it's changing in real time in the landscape." — Mitch Stein [14:49]

• Poor Data Tracking:
  • Many organizations don’t know how much DAF funding they're receiving because they fail to track it accurately in their CRMs.

  "If they can't answer that question right away, then you have a problem with your data." — Mitch Stein [15:43]

• Insufficient Donor Communication & Experience:
  • Donors need regular reminders and visible options to give via DAFs across all channels (email, forms, website).
  • Audit all donor touchpoints to ensure DAFs are easy to find, EIN is visible, and DAF payment is integrated.

  "Auditing your experiences, your website. Do you have information on DAFs? How easy is it to find your EIN on your website?" — Mitch Stein [18:25]

• Lack of First-Hand Experience:
  • Mitch strongly recommends fundraisers open their own DAF accounts to learn the donor journey and better empathize.

4. Case Studies & Standout DAF Campaigns

• DAF Day (Industry Event):
  • Takes place in October; a perfect annual rallying point for nonprofits to prompt DAF gifts.
  • Example: Small school in Wisconsin sent a DAF Day email and received seven first-time DAF gifts totaling $12,000.

  "We got seven DAF gifts from first time DAF donors that ended up totaling $12,000. And that was huge for us." — Audience story via Mitch Stein [21:29]

  • Susan G. Komen received over 300 DAF gifts in one day using a cross-channel strategy.
• Integrating DAFs into Existing Campaigns:
  • Public Theater (NYC) capital campaign added DAF as a gift option and saw 25% of campaign gifts (half from first-time DAF donors), with a 10x increase in average gift size.

  "Out of... 90 gifts... 25% of them are from donor advised funds. And half of those were first time donors... their increase in gift size was like 10x." — Mitch Stein [23:43]

5. Practical Implementation Tips

• Just Get Started:
  • "Do something." Even a single piece of DAF messaging is better than nothing.

  "The most important thing is to do something because otherwise this wave and trend is just going to pass you right on by." — Mitch Stein [25:33]

• Team Coordination:
  • Encourage every team member to flag missed DAF opportunities (no DAF mention on mailers, forms, etc.).
  • Make DAFs a standing agenda item, crowdsource improvement ideas.
• Broad (Not Targeted) Communication:
  • Don’t try to over-target; talking about DAFs never hurts and often sparks curiosity or action for both current and potential DAF users.

  "We should send this to everybody... If they do know about DAFs, it's going to speak to them... If they've never heard about it before, you're providing value." — Mitch Stein [28:29]

6. Future Trends & Strategic Imperatives

• DAFs Still Accelerating:
  • DAF assets and distributions are poised for continued rapid growth; the sector could reach $1 trillion in assets within 5–10 years.

  "We could be looking at a trillion dollar DAF market in the next five to ten years." — Mitch Stein [32:28]

  • DAFs are fast closing the gap with private foundations and may soon surpass them in annual giving volumes.
• Policy Changes:
  • Recent tax law changes have accelerated DAF contributions but are unlikely to slow DAF use—financial advisors leverage new policy changes to encourage donor planning.
  • Data and trends strongly suggest continued, accelerating donor adoption.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "About one in every five dollars donated to charity is coming from a donor advised fund." — Mitch Stein [06:14]
• "The most important thing is to do something because otherwise this wave and trend is just going to pass you right on by." — Mitch Stein [25:33]
• “We could be looking at a trillion dollar DAF market in the next five to ten years.” — Mitch Stein [32:28]
• "This is not just a way to give for super wealthy people anymore… minimum gift sizes that are $18, zero minimum balance." — Mitch Stein [19:12]
• "Putting [DAFs] in front of people and reminding them, I'm telling you, it works wonders." — Mitch Stein [23:54]

Timeline of Key Segments

• [05:18] – Mitch Stein introduces current data and massive scale of DAFs.
• [08:27] – How DAFs make donors more generous.
• [09:39] – Addressing misconceptions: payout rates and “hoarding.”
• [14:49] – Common nonprofit mistakes with DAF strategy; lack of tracking and communication.
• [19:12] – DAFs are now accessible and relevant for all, not just the wealthy.
• [21:29] – DAF Day success story.
• [23:43] – Public Theater case: Adding DAF options leads to 10x gift increases.
• [25:33] – The importance of starting now and simple first steps.
• [28:52] – Communication to all donors about DAFs—always a net positive.
• [29:28] – Future trends: DAFs set to rival or surpass private foundations.
• [32:28] – Projected trillion-dollar DAF market; advice for nonprofit leaders to not "miss the wave."

Resources Mentioned

• Chariot: givechariot.com (free resources, DAF Pay integration, plenty of DAF education)
• Mitch Stein: Active on LinkedIn for ongoing DAF fundraising insights.
• Annual DAF Report: Now by the DAF Research Collaborative.
• Chariot/K2D DAF Fundraising Report

Actionable Takeaways for Nonprofit Leaders

• Start Tracking: Know your organization’s DAF numbers and code them in your CRM.
• Communicate Consistently: Make DAF giving visible and accessible—website, forms, receipts, and all campaign materials.
• Participate in DAF Day: Mark your calendar for October; leverage industry-wide momentum.
• Empower Your Team: Make DAF awareness a team-wide responsibility.
• Experiment: Test DAF messaging in mailers, emails, and event campaigns.
• Adopt a DAF: Fundraisers should open their own DAF to walk through the donor experience themselves.

In Dr. Harter’s words:

"DAFs to me are so important and they're going to become more important. So always looking for new opportunities to help have donors give and make it easy for donors to give." [35:35]

Perfect for:

• Executive Directors
• Development Directors
• Nonprofit fundraisers seeking to future-proof their revenue and better engage today’s (and tomorrow’s) major donors.