Frequently Asked Questions

What allows you to do this when others can’t or won’t?

The IRS has granted us tax exempt status specifically to focus on investing for impact. Plus, our focused investment process allows us to move quickly and navigate this complex space. This agility is key when making venture capital and private equity investments. Finally, we have adopted an Investment Policy Statement custom-tailored to support impact investing. Read it yourself if you'd like (it's kind of long, but it spells out our philosophy and practice of investing): Investment Policy Statement

Describe your minimums and fees

Our donor advised fund “fee" is 85bps (0.85%) annually on assets under management, excluding cash holdings. This is collected monthly or accrued until cash is available.

When we make a new impact investment, we charge a one-time 3% origination “fee" on the total value of the investment. Our minimum investment is $25,000 with a $1,000 minimum origination fee.

We colloquially refer to these as “fees” but it’s really a grant. We are a 501(c)(3) charity so both the annual and origination assessments are charitable contributions.

Are you a charity or a business?

Yes. We operate with the heart and structure of a charity and the business disciplines of our for-profit peers. We are a Georgia nonprofit corporation and recognized as tax exempt under 501(c)(3)—that means donors are eligible for a tax deduction when they contribute money to us. While complying with all the state and federal rules for charities, we view ourselves as a business. That means we have a revenue model and employ business disciplines customary of our for-profit peers.

What is an Impact Account?

An Impact Account is a donor advised fund at Impact Foundation, whose assets are legally owned by the foundation. We allow donors to advise on how their Impact Account will be invested within the parameters of the foundation's Investment Policy. This means a donor can select the companies in which it wants to invest so long as the company has positive social and/or spiritual impact. When those investments liquidate, the donor can choose to invest in another Impact Company or grant the money to another charity.

What is impact investing?

According to the Global Impact Investing Network, impact investments are "investments made into companies, organizations, and funds with the intention to generate social and environmental impact alongside a financial return. To the standard, we have added spiritual transformation as a key component.

All enterprises, regardless of tax status, can produce both social and financial results on a spectrum from positive to negative. Therefore, these investments can be in nonprofits, private companies, venture funds, or private equity funds, and may be structured as debt, equity, or a blend of the two.

What does it mean to categorize a company’s impact as “redemptive methodology”?

An enterprise whose primary positive impact on the world happens through the way business is conducted. Its leadership, being rooted in Christ, follows the Spirit to intentionally participate in God’s transformational work in the lives of employees, vendors, & customers while creating sustainable value.

To see redemptive methodology companies in our portfolio click here.

Will an Impact Account owe taxes on its investments?

We do not pay tax on interest income from loans. There may be taxes due when we make an equity investment in certain types of entities (e.g., an LLC taxed as a partnership), but we deploy a variety of strategies to avoid or limit the amount of tax we pay. Our effective tax rate will be much lower than what a traditional investor would pay on the same income.