Philanthropic strategy for newly realized wealth
By Amanda Buntmann, Vice President, Client Advisor, Philanthropic Services, Whittier Trust
The recently released 2026 Global Family Office Report by J.P. Morgan was a survey of 333 single-family offices, across 30 A liquidity event often begins with spreadsheets, attorneys, and tax projections. But for many wealthy families, the more consequential questions emerge afterward.
In one early meeting following a significant business sale, three generations gathered around the table: a founder who had built substantial wealth from modest beginnings, his adult children, and teen grandchildren. The family had come together to discuss establishing a private foundation. What unfolded became a broader conversation about identity, legacy, and shared purpose.
We discussed important topics: What did they want future generations to remember about the family? Which values mattered enough to institutionalize? How could philanthropy become something that united the family over time?
Those conversations often sit at the center of charitable giving after a liquidity event. Whether wealth is created through the sale of a company, an IPO, or a major real estate transaction, families often face a narrow window to make thoughtful philanthropic decisions. Those decisions can shape both tax outcomes and family dynamics for decades to come.
At Whittier Trust, we believe philanthropy is most effective when approached not simply as tax planning, but as part of a broader family philanthropy strategy. The structure certainly matters, but the family’s intent matters even more.
Start with the Purpose, Not the Vehicle
Families often assume the first question is which charitable structure to establish. In practice, the more important question is: What are we trying to accomplish?
The answer shapes every subsequent decision, from whether a family should establish a donor-advised fund or pursue more formal private foundation planning for wealthy families, to how children and grandchildren will participate in future grantmaking.
Some families want simplicity and flexibility. Others want to build a lasting institution that future generations will steward together. Some are primarily motivated by immediate tax considerations after a high-income year. Others see philanthropy as a way to create continuity across generations, particularly after a transformative liquidity event changes the family’s financial reality almost overnight.
The most productive philanthropic planning conversations tend to focus first on values. Our team helps those clients think through questions such as: Which causes matter deeply to this family? How visible or hands-on do we want to be? Should giving happen primarily during the founders’ lifetime, or continue in perpetuity?
After those questions are answered the appropriate structure will start to become clear.
Donor-Advised Funds and Private Foundations
An efficient and flexible starting point can be creating donor-advised funds for ultra-high-net-worth families. This allows them to contribute appreciated assets, receive an immediate charitable deduction, and distribute grants over time, all while avoiding much of the administrative complexity associated with a private foundation. This can be especially valuable following a major liquidity event, when taxable income spikes dramatically and timing becomes critical.
Many families choose to fund a donor-advised fund immediately after a transaction closes, then spend the following months developing a longer-term giving strategy. The flexibility allows families to move quickly from a tax perspective without rushing philanthropic decisions.
Private foundations, by contrast, offer greater control and permanence. They allow families to formalize governance structures, involve multiple generations in decision-making, and create a visible philanthropic legacy that can endure for decades or even longer.
One family Whittier Trust advised following a substantial liquidity event viewed the foundation not only as a charitable vehicle, but as a mechanism for family continuity. The founder’s four adult children—each with different personalities, priorities, and growing families of their own—began meeting annually to discuss grantmaking decisions together.
Although the causes they championed individually varied, the family ultimately discovered a shared philosophy beneath them all: a belief in providing tools for success, rather than temporary fixes. Their giving focused largely on organizations that equip vulnerable populations with tools for long-term stability and independence, from at-risk youth programs to educational initiatives and workforce development efforts.
Over time, the foundation became more than an administrative entity. It became one of the few formal structures bringing the family together around a common purpose and deepening their admiration for one another.
That dynamic is increasingly central to multigenerational philanthropy strategy. In our experience, families who involve younger generations early—giving them meaningful participation rather than symbolic roles—can create stronger long-term engagement with both the family and the philanthropic mission itself.
Philanthropy as a Tool for Family Continuity
The most effective family philanthropy strategy is rarely transactional. At its best, philanthropy creates opportunities for families to articulate shared values that might otherwise remain unspoken. In some cases, those conversations can be transformative.
One family arrived at Whittier Trust fragmented after the death of the family matriarch, whose estate established a healthcare-focused foundation for her children to oversee together. Initially, the siblings had very different interpretations of what wellness meant. One became passionate about research and academia. Another focused on initiatives that would benefit advances in childhood cancer treatments. Others gravitated toward building hospitals and serving individuals with limited resources and helping them get the care they need
The process of building the foundation together gave the siblings something they had not previously shared: a collaborative framework grounded in their mother’s values, but flexible enough to reflect their own perspectives as well.
These are the kinds of conversations that philanthropic advisory services can facilitate when integrated thoughtfully into broader wealth planning. The goal is not simply efficient grant administration and tax advantages. Rather, it is helping families define what they want their wealth to accomplish.
Integrating Philanthropy with Wealth Strategy
Sophisticated charitable planning requires close coordination among philanthropic advisors, CPAs, estate attorneys, and investment professionals, particularly during the year of a liquidity event.
The timing of charitable contributions, the type of assets donated, deduction limitations, estate implications, and long-term governance structures all intersect. Families who begin planning early generally preserve far more flexibility than those making decisions reactively after a transaction closes. But while tax efficiency matters, the families who enjoy the greatest long-term satisfaction from philanthropy are rarely focused on tax benefits alone.
Many families come to philanthropy because of the tax advantages, but they stay because they realize it becomes something much larger. It’s a way to bring generations together, create intentionality around wealth, and establish a legacy rooted not only in financial success, but in shared purpose.
A liquidity event is more than a financial milestone. For many families, it is an opportunity to decide what their wealth will mean to future generations and to the communities they hope to impact.
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Whit Batchelor serves as Executive Vice President, Client Advisor and San Diego Regional Manager at Whittier Trust, where he expertly navigates the complex financial landscapes of high-net-worth individuals and families.
Amanda Buntmann is a Vice President, Client Advisor in Whittier Trust’s Philanthropic Services department providing philanthropic advisory and administrative services to high-net-worth individuals and families.