VANCOUVER, BC, June 24, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —
VANCOUVER, BC — June 24, 2026 — Charitable Impact today announced the launch of Introduction to Donor-Advised Funds, a CIRO-accredited continuing education (CE) course designed to teach financial advisors how to integrate charitable giving into client planning to support their financial and charitable goals and increase opportunities to manage investment assets.
Key Information
- The course provides 1 CE credit and is approximately one hour long.
- It teaches advisors how donor-advised funds work and how to position them with clients, including common giving strategies; tax considerations, such as eliminating capital gains by donating publicly traded securities; eligible asset types; DAF administration and advisor management fee structures; and how DAFs compare with private foundations.
- The course addresses a gap: 87% of affluent clients want to give, but only 6% receive advisor support for charitable giving.
The launch comes as research points to a growing need for advisor support in helping clients give more strategically, including through donor-advised funds, an increasingly popular charitable giving vehicle in Canada. CEG Insights found that while 87% of affluent investors intend to make a meaningful impact through charitable giving, only 6% currently receive guidance on charitable giving from their advisors. Without a clear framework for these conversations, charitable giving can remain disconnected from tax, estate, and investment planning.
“Financial advisors help clients manage many aspects of their financial lives, but charitable giving is still often overlooked during planning conversations,” said John Bromley, Founder and CEO of Charitable Impact. “That can happen for understandable reasons: philanthropy may feel outside an advisor’s main practice, it can seem counterintuitive when clients are giving assets away, and it could be an added administrative burden for advisory teams. Donor-advised funds help address those barriers for advisors. They give advisors a practical way to help their clients achieve both their financial and philanthropic goals, attract and retain charitable assets under management, and reduce administrative workload. And for clients, they provide an excellent donor tool for managing charitable giving.”
That is where advisor education becomes important. DAFs make charitable giving easier to integrate into financial planning, but it’s important for advisors to have a clear understanding of how they work, how broadly they apply across clients, and how to raise them during client touchpoints such as onboarding, annual reviews, estate planning, dealing with capital gains and any relational conversations. A 2026 report from the Donor Advised Fund Research Collaborative found that advisors who are more familiar with DAFs are more likely to recommend them, suggesting that education and hands-on understanding can play an important role in how confidently advisors raise the topic with clients.
Charitable Impact’s one-hour live and interactive course explains how DAFs work, why they are gaining traction, how they compare with private foundations and ways advisors can identify relevant client scenarios, including donating publicly traded securities for tax efficiency. Advisors who take the course will understand what makes separating the timing of charitable contributions from grants to the charities clients may want to support, a key advantage for them and their clients, given that charitable assets can be invested to generate tax-free returns. In Canada, registered charities reported $16.6 billion in assets held in DAFs in 2024.
“Charitable giving should not be treated as separate from tax planning. It is tax planning. And it’s purpose-driven. This is one area where advisors have a huge opportunity to provide more value to their clients,” said Eugene Wong, Director, Charitable Investment Programs at Charitable Impact. “Many clients are already giving, but they may be defaulting to cash gifts when there are more tax-efficient ways to support the charities they care most about. This course helps advisors recognize those opportunities, such as donating publicly traded securities, timing contributions more strategically, and using donor-advised funds to make charitable giving part of broader financial planning.”
As individuals, families, and business owners think more intentionally about legacy and impact, donor-advised funds offer advisors and their clients a more flexible, organized approach than managing multiple one-time direct gifts. DAFs streamline contributions, tax receipting, investment growth, and grants to charities, allowing advisors to focus on strategy, tax efficiency, and long-term planning.
Advisors can qualify for one (1) CE credit upon completion of the course. Registration details and session inquiries are available at: https://giving.charitableimpact.com/introduction-to-donor-advised-funds-register-interest.
FAQs
1. Who is this course for?
The course is designed for financial advisors.
2. What will advisors learn?
Advisors will learn the fundamentals of donor-advised funds and how they add value for clients by simplifying charitable giving, maximizing tax efficiency, and enabling the investment of donated assets
3. How long is the course?
The course is approximately one hour, including a 50-minute presentation and a 10-minute Q&A session.
4. Is the course accredited?
Yes. Participants qualify for one (1) CIRO CE credit on completion of the course.
5. Why does charitable planning matter for advisors?
Many clients already give, but their charitable gifts are often handled separately from tax, estate, and investment planning. Advisors can improve client satisfaction and deepen relationships by recommending tax-efficient donation strategies, including capital gains tax exemptions for in-kind securities donations and tax-free investment growth.
6. When will the course be available?
The course is now available with sessions offered throughout the year.
7. How can advisors register?
Advisors can learn more and register at: https://giving.charitableimpact.com/introduction-to-donor-advised-funds-register-interest
About Charitable Impact
Charitable Impact is a modern giving platform that helps Canadians engage more personally and intentionally with charitable giving. Operating as a donor-advised fund, it offers flexible tools and support to help people plan their giving, support the causes that matter to them, and collaborate with others to grow their collective impact—all in one place. Since 2011, our community of 227,000+ users has donated more than 1.8 billion dollars, with over 16,100 registered charities benefiting from the generosity of people across Canada. Learn more at https://www.charitableimpact.com/
About Charitable Investment Program
At Charitable Impact, our Charitable Investment Program is designed to seamlessly integrate charitable donations with wealth management and other financial planning services. It also offers high-level customer support services for advisors and their clients. By partnering with us, advisors can offer clients a streamlined, impactful way to achieve their philanthropic goals without losing the ability to manage the donated assets. This collaboration strengthens client relationships and enhances advisors’ value propositions. Learn more at https://www.charitableimpact.com/advisors
- Introduction to Donor-advised funds
