Ultra-wealthy donors are giving more as public funding shrinks

Ultra-high-net-worth philanthropy reached US$250 billion globally in 2025 - a rise of nearly 32 per cent since 2022 - as government humanitarian aid contributions fell to 44 per cent below their 10-year average, according to a new report from Goldman Sachs Private Wealth Management and its GS Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management.

The 2026 "Philanthropy in Focus" report, based on a June 2026 survey of 569 Goldman Sachs private clients, family businesses, and family offices across the Americas and Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, found that 41 per cent of respondents plan to increase their giving over the next three years. Among those already giving in excess of US$1.5 million annually, that share rises to 48 per cent, according to the report.

The findings land at a moment when Canadian financial advisors face growing pressure to bring philanthropy into estate and wealth transfer conversations - particularly with the largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in Canadian history already under way.

Read next: Philanthropy with purpose: BMO’s Danielle Robinson on how Canadian giving is changing

Values, not tax, drive giving decisions

Despite common assumptions about what motivates donors, only 12 per cent of Goldman Sachs survey respondents cited charitable tax deductions as a reason for giving.

The dominant motivations were alignment with personal values and beliefs (78 per cent) and personal connection to a cause (51 per cent), according to the report. Just 6 per cent said tax deductions influence the actual size of their annual gift.

That is a significant finding for advisors who default to tax efficiency as the primary entry point for philanthropic conversations. While tax-advantaged vehicles such as donor-advised funds (DAFs) and private foundations remain important planning tools, the Goldman Sachs data suggests that clients - particularly larger donors - are more likely to respond to conversations grounded in purpose and legacy than in tax savings alone.

Carra Cote-Ackah, global head of Philanthropy Engagement and Legacy Planning at Goldman Sachs Family Office, wrote in the report's introduction that the firm's goal is to help clients make "more intentional, strategic, and impactful giving choices."

Three pressures reshaping the landscape

The Goldman Sachs report identifies three converging macro forces that are simultaneously reducing government capacity to fund public services and expanding the opportunity for private philanthropy: unsustainable government debt, demographic ageing, and AI-driven disruption of labour markets.

On government debt, the report cites UN OCHA data showing humanitarian aid contributions in 2026 are running 44 per cent below the 10-year average, as Western governments divert spending toward defence. Canada is not exempt: government expenditure on public good services faces the same structural squeeze the report documents across G7 economies, with debt-to-GDP ratios at or near historic highs, according to Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research data cited in the report.

Demographic change compounds the problem. Canada's old-age dependency ratio - the number of people aged 65 and over for every 100 people of working age - has already risen significantly and is projected to increase further through 2050, according to OECD data referenced in the report. Greater demand for health and retirement support, combined with a proportionally smaller tax base to fund it, creates structural gaps that philanthropy is increasingly being asked to fill.

The AI dimension is more uncertain. Goldman Sachs Research cited in the report estimates generative AI could boost labour productivity in developed markets by 15 per cent over a decade, but that the technology could also substitute for approximately 25 per cent of current work tasks in the near term - adding labour displacement costs to already-strained public budgets before the productivity dividends arrive.

Read next: Ultra wealthy giving surges globally as Canadian advisors eye philanthropy opportunity

What this means for Canadian advisors

For Canadian wealth managers, the most actionable section of the report concerns what Goldman Sachs calls philanthropy's "structural edge" - the capacity of private capital to act in ways that government and corporate funding cannot: agile, patient, pluralistic, and free from election cycles or quarterly reporting pressures.

Notably, 45 per cent of survey respondents had already adjusted their philanthropic strategy in response to recent geopolitical shifts, with 30 per cent increasing their giving and 16 per cent changing the causes they support. The finding suggests that many wealthy clients are already thinking dynamically about their giving - with or without advisor guidance.

The wealth transfer dimension is particularly pressing in Canada. An estimated $1 trillion is changing hands this decade alone among Canadian baby boomers and their heirs, according to Chartered Professional Accountants Canada, with donor-advised funds emerging as one of the fastest-growing vehicles in the country. DAF assets in Canada rose to nearly $10.5 billion by the end of 2023, and demand has continued to grow as advisors incorporate them into estate planning conversations.

Research from Altrata cited in the Goldman Sachs report adds a gender dimension advisors should not overlook. UHNW women - who may inherit a disproportionate share of the great wealth transfer - regard giving as a partnership rather than a transaction, basing decisions on affinity, shared values, and demonstrated impact. That behavioural profile has direct implications for how advisors approach next-generation client relationships.

The report recommends advisors encourage clients to treat their giving as a "charitable allocation portfolio" with short-, medium-, and long-term goals - structuring philanthropic intent with the same rigour applied to investment management.

The full Goldman Sachs 2026 Philanthropy in Focus report is available at pwm.gs.com.