Zombie-Stiftungen: Wenn die Stiftung selbst zum Förderprojekt wird
Kleine Stiftungen geben häufig mehr für sich selbst aus als für ihren Zweck. Die Rechnung eines Stifters zeigt, warum das niemandem auffällt.
A foundation's accounting reveals the true costs of running a charitable organization. When a foundation itself becomes the beneficiary, the expenses can be surprising. In one case, a donor hired a prestigious law firm to manage the foundation, only paying a fraction of the bill. The foundation, worth four million euros, invests in bonds, dividend-paying funds, and certificates.
Annual expenses amount to nearly 4,900 euros, including a small fee for maintaining transparency records and a unique identification number for stock trading. Additionally, the donor contributes 118 hours of personal time, spent on tasks such as investment management, bookkeeping, foundation oversight, tax compliance, and generating donation receipts.
Only 20 hours remain for determining who should receive the funds. The donor provided an itemized list, seeking feedback on whether the expenses are typical. While the overall costs may appear high, the foundation's cautious investments generate approximately 110,000 euros in annual returns. Depending on the fees associated with the funds, a fifth to half of these returns may go towards administrative costs, bank charges, and product fees, with the donor's time valued at 50 euros per hour.
Written by urgent.news from Handelsblatt's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
