Charitable bequests double as the largest wealth transfer in American history begins
Charitable bequests to American nonprofits reached roughly $62 billion in 2025, double the level of a decade earlier and up nearly 20 percent in a single year, according to Giving USA cited by Jennifer Xia Spradling and Patrick Schmitt in Stanford Social Innovation Review. Cerulli Associates now projects $124 trillion transferring through 2048, with a potential $18 trillion going to charity.
The obstacle described is a mismatch of horizons. A bequest pipeline takes years to mature and decades to pay out, while executive directors meet payroll annually and development teams close gaps within twelve months, so the urgent claim wins over the larger one. The authors argue private foundations are nearly the only institutions able to fund on that timescale, citing the Harold Grinspoon Foundation's claimed $2 billion in additional pledges.
Source: Stanford Social Innovation Review · September 24, 2026