Financial advisers need to be more proactive when it comes to bringing up structured philanthropy in client discussions, as a gap still exists between the interest in giving and the awareness of how to do it.
"There is a gap in structured giving where people want to give and they are finding it difficult to connect with organisations and getting involved," Opportunity International Australia philanthropy director Stephen Robertson told InvestorDaily.
"It's hard for them to find organisations and it's hard for organisations to find them - there's a market awareness gap."
The responsibility of advisers supporting and recommending philanthropy lies in their duty to ensure that the goals and objectives of clients are met hence they have the ability to close the gap, Robertson said.
"If the adviser is doing his job properly, philanthropy must come up in the client conversation and get that information out," he said.
"If planners aren't asking the question, then they aren't providing a holistic level of advice."
The onset of baby boomers will drive further opportunities in philanthropy, although it is not just the wealthy taking an interest in giving.
"The higher the amount of wealth, the more interest there is in structured giving but we're seeing a trend in generation X and Y who are requesting for a structured giving process, regardless of what their level of wealth is," Robertson said.
While structured philanthropy requires a significantly engaged approach, the process itself did not have to be executed entirely by the adviser.
"The question then becomes, 'how does the adviser can facilitate that?'
"How much the adviser wants to get involved is solely dependent upon whether the adviser wants to do it or not. They can outsource."
He recommends advisers should build relationships with specialist philanthropy organisations to aid in their training and knowledge.
A global trend starting to gain interest in Australia is social impact investments where there is both a social return and a financial return.
"It's called double bottom line investing and has got massive traction in Asia and the United States where high net worth investors, pension funds and foundations are investing into it," he said.
