What is Crypto Philanthropy?
Key Incentives for Crypto Users to Give
- Crypto is the best performing asset class of the last decade, with cryptocurrency investments like Bitcoin beating out the stock market by nearly 1,000%.
- 14%, or approximately 21 million are invested in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, a figure set to double in the next year.
- U.S. donors don’t pay capital gains taxes on any property asset (e.g., crypto, stocks) that they donate to a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit.
- In other words, donors save more on taxes when they donate their most appreciated property—which, for millions, is their crypto.
- Source: Frequently Asked Questions on Virtual Currency Transactions (IRS)
Crypto Donor Demographics
On paper, crypto donors seem to be made in a lab for philanthropic giving. They tend to be young, high-net-worth individuals with strong tax incentives to give.
- The per capita annual income for crypto users is $111,000.
- This is a higher average income trend than that of any city in America.
- The average age of crypto users is 38. In contrast, the average donor in the nonprofit sector is 64.
- 67% of crypto users that identify as male, down from 90% in 2015 as more women get in.
Key Crypto Donor Giving Trends
The data below suggests that the average crypto donor is uniquely generous, as compared to the average cash donor.
- $11,000 is the average crypto donation size on The Giving Block.
- Source: The Giving Block, Inc. (2021). Crypto Philanthropy Industry Report 2021: The state of cryptocurrency donations in the nonprofit sector (CPIR, Vol 1). CPIR.
- This is nearly 100 times higher than the average online donation across the sector ($128).
- 45% of crypto users donate at least $1,000 to charity each year.
- Only 33% of the general investor population gives $1,000 or more to charity annually.
- Source: Growing popularity of cryptocurrency could fuel charitable giving (Fidelity Charitable)
Crypto Giving Tuesday 2021 Stats
- Total amount donated: $2.4M (a 583% increase from Crypto Giving Tuesday 2020)
- Average donation size: $12,600 (a 20% increase from the average crypto donation in 2021)
- # of participating nonprofits: 1,017 (up 839% from Crypto Giving Tuesday 2020)
Total donation volume by crypto (top 5):
Crypto Rank | Amount Donated (USD) |
1. Ethereum (ETH) | $1,212,687.98 |
2. Bitcoin (BTC) | $885,504.55 |
3. USD Coin (USDC) | $294,431.24 |
4. Uniswap (UNI) | $8,974.11 |
5. Tezos (XTZ) | $5,160.80 |
Of course, more crypto donations means a greater positive impact on the world. But understanding crypto philanthropy is about more than crunching the numbers, it’s about recognizing the trends and driving factors behind this fast-growing form of charitable giving.