Stock Donations and the Future of Church Giving

We’re living in an era of unprecedented technological advancement, which affects every aspect of our lives. The way people interact and engage with your Church is no exception to this trend.

Most leaders have already embraced tech solutions specifically designed to enhance ministry; 89% of churches report using a ChMS solution, according to the 2023 State of Church Tech report. Mobile apps continue to expand in functionality and grow in popularity, and online giving now drives the vast majority of donations received by churches.

And yet, the types of gifts that can fuel mission-based organizations haven’t yet been fully accepted. “Complex” gifts—that’s to say, non-cash assets—require special attention, digital functionality, and professional know-how.

That’s why Pushpay has partnered with Engiven, the #1 donation platform for stocks and cryptocurrency. Their system allows churches to accept complex financial gifts—which are often exponentially larger in value than cash donations.

Pushpay first released an integration with Engiven’s crypto functionality in March ‘23. Today, their equally powerful stock processing system is accessible through Pushpay Giving, empowering donors by opening a new channel for generosity that benefits givers and churches alike.

Overall Non-Cash Giving Market Trends

Experts—including Engiven’s CEO James Lawrence—agree that we’re on the precipice of a tremendous wealth transfer between generations. As James explains:

“A massive transfer of wealth in the U.S. has begun and will continue over the next 30 years, as the baby boomers transfer trillions of dollars of wealth to Gen X and Millennials, who have been raised with digital experience.”

Put another way, fiscal resources are about to be owned by people who grew up managing all their financial transactions through computers and mobile apps. That trend cannot be ignored.

As younger generations take control of major non-cash assets, the manner in which they express generosity will evolve in parallel:

“Non-cash and complex giving are definitely on the rise. Almost 75% of aggregate household assets are in the form of financial assets—namely stocks and mutual funds, retirement accounts, and closely-held businesses. This means that their ability to give is substantially higher when it comes to non-cash assets like crypto, stock, property, etc.”

Benefits for the Church

Once ministries and leaders embrace complex gifts like crypto and stocks, a new tier of financial gifts becomes available:

“The biggest value is for ministries to unlock a massive asset class and the major gifts that typically come from it. According to a 2023 poll by Gallup, it’s estimated that around 61% of adults in the U.S. own stock with more than $21 billion in stock donated to charities each year.”

That said, it’s not enough to simply offer a method for accepting stock donations. These processes should be clear, transparent, and promoted to all potential givers. Leadership teams need to develop a plan early on—and adjust as necessary—to maximize stock donation efficiency for donors and staff alike.

Benefits for Givers

Your congregation wants to donate to your church through complex gifts. They care about supporting the ministries that resonate with them—and certainly won’t argue against the associated tax benefits:

“Stock gifts are donated year-round, but the majority are given at year’s end. The main reason is that stock gifts can provide an excellent tax benefit to the giver by reducing their tax exposure from capital gains tax. As a result, the ministry generally receives larger gifts in the form of stock.”

Note that donors benefit exponentially when giving appreciated stock, especially when that stock has been owned for a year or more. Instead of cashing out and paying capital gains tax, the giver receives a higher tax deduction, while the church enjoys the full donation amount. It’s a win-win.

Risks or Tax Considerations

Whenever a new fiscal instrument is introduced, those considering its use justifiably question the risk involved. But churches accepting stock donations—with the proper tools and documentation that Engiven provides—enjoy a completely risk-free process:

“As a nonprofit, the ministry will not have any kind of tax exposure from stock gifts. The tax benefits are designed to help the giver.”

What’s more, Engiven’s platform is intentionally giver-focused. Donor needs are, and always will be, the priority:

“Our philosophy of generosity is that ministries should always be relational in terms of how they fundraise, but highly technical in the execution of the fundraising itself. Stock giving, along with other kinds of complex giving, can take a lot of time and follow up relationally. But it should be an elegant process in terms of flow of funds. Sometimes ministries are not even made aware of a stock donation that’s been made until weeks or months afterward. Our process enables real-time stock process awareness, which means the ministry can acknowledge the giver in a real-time way. As a result, there’s no downside and a ton of upside to receiving stock donations.

“…My hope is that in the very near future, ministries will be able to accept every type of digital or physical donation type that is easily exchanged for cash that the ministry uses to grow their Kingdom impact. Engiven is building these technologies now and our partnership with Pushpay will help get them into the hands of ministries who need them.”

The teams behind Engiven and Pushpay are driven by intentional innovation; we don’t build tech in a silo. We speak with and listen to the churches we serve, and develop solutions based on their feedback.

Which is why our dedicated team of Pushpay experts—who live and breathe Church tech—would love to chat with you about your unique needs, and how Pushpay might support your mission.

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