The philanthropic sector stands at a critical crossroad. Nonprofit organisations of all sizes are frantic as Washington begins to pull back approximately $250 billion in annual grants, while the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed into law on 4 July 2025, adds confusion with new rules. These, and other shifts in the flow of federal dollars, alongside changes to charitable tax laws for both individuals and corporations, leaves us facing a foreboding void. It’s a void that is here now, arches into the future, and which calls on all of us to engage with a more strategic approach to giving.

Acknowledging the near-term challenges, this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for nonprofits, especially the more than 100,000 supported by federal funds, to build more resilient, diversified funding models that leverage financial technology to expand donor participation.

Leveraging Modern Giving Technology to Translate Policy Into Revenue

To start, we must recognise that the money to fill this void exists. Four large pools of private capital—individuals, corporations, private foundations, and Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs)—hold ample resources, and modest increases in giving, guided by new technologically literate strategies, can more than offset lost federal grant revenue.

The new policy landscape, however, requires a targeted approach to mobilising private capital from all four of these pools, and each presents a unique opportunity when taken with the right strategy. In particular, corporations and individuals must continue to be the foundation and backbone of American giving, and these groups must act now to take advantage of new tax laws to maximize their philanthropic impact after 1 January 2026.

By adopting these proactive, tech-driven playbooks, nonprofit executives can navigate this uncertain environment, ensure the survival and even the expansion of their organisations, and replace at-risk federal dollars. This, while also building long-term, sustainable giving models rooted in leveraging modern giving technology that need never rely upon federal funding.

Strategy for Individuals

Giving has been part of Americans’ DNA for over 250 years, with individuals driving 66 percent of all annual giving. Despite a drop in itemised deductions from 31 percent of taxpayers in 2016 to a projected 9 percent for the 2024 tax year, individual giving has grown from ~$282 billion to an estimated $392.5 billion in 2024, and we give for many reasons—not just tax breaks.

Read the full article about leveraging modern giving technology by Joe Phoenix at Alliance Magazine.