Asian philanthropy is at a new juncture, marked by a transition of private wealth to a new generation of wealth owners who are keen to apply a social impact lens across their assets, including their businesses. This generation of change-makers is now infusing purpose into wealth with moonshot philanthropy, and is looking to spark systemic change.
Now into its 11th year, the Credit Suisse Philanthropists Connect reflects Credit Suisse's commitment to facilitate and support philanthropic giving in the Asia Pacific region. Held in Singapore at the iconic Raffles Hotel, this year's event was graced by Guest-of-Honour President Halimah Yacob, President of the Republic of Singapore, and welcomed over 130 guests from around the world, including global thought leaders and expert practitioners in the philanthropy and non-profit space.
Themed "From Bringing Wealth to Purpose To Bringing Purpose to Wealth", this year's Philanthropists Connect highlights the mindset shift among younger philanthropists, who increasingly view philanthropy as mission-critical. These NextGen philanthropists are expanding their efforts to integrate purpose even more deeply into wealth management, and are seeking to co-create social solutions by embedding an impact lens into business strategy and focusing on ecosystem change, thereby shifting to a more all-encompassing and sustainable mode of philanthropy.
Benjamin Cavalli, Head of Wealth Management Asia Pacific and APAC Sustainability Leader, Credit Suisse, said, "We expect the largest amount of wealth to be transferred to the next generation in the coming decade. Even as the dynamics of philanthropy change to meet this generational shift, the fundamental goal of supporting segments in society who are most in need of financial attention remains unchanged. We look forward to seeing how the Philanthropists Connect, along with our white paper and our NextGen programs inspire change-makers toward making deep and sustained impact in the causes they support."
A white paper titled "A Generation of Change-Makers", co-authored by Credit Suisse and Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN), was presented at the event. The white paper takes a deep dive into emerging trends in philanthropy across Asia.
Mr Gavin Vongkusolkit, Director, Mitr Phol Group, participated in the panel to discuss key themes from the white paper. He shared that the best way to create sustainable impact is to embed it deeply within core business practices. "Transformation happens systematically - not just by giving a cut of our profits, but by looking at it in terms of our business model. There's a lot of good that can come out of that."
"We don't just give things away. As a family, we tend to prefer giving in a form that allows the gift to keep on giving. This means we look for continuity in whatever we support, whether it's schools, foundations or our own business practices, and we tend not to look too far away from our own community," he added.
Key highlights from the white paper are outlined below:
Strategic Philanthropy Trends in Asia-Pacific
- Asia is growing wealthier even as the pandemic has exacerbated pre-existing inequalities and social and environmental issues. The Ultra-High Net Worth Individuals population is expected to grow by 38% over the next five years, and around 35% of wealth will be transferred to the next generation in the next 5 to 7 years.
- Next-generation philanthropists are looking to deepen the impact of philanthropy through the strategic use of social investment tools in tandem with grant-making, to bring about deeper, longer-lasting impact.
- Philanthropists are recognizing the need for collaboration as they work towards common goals.
Case Study Insights on Philanthropy
- Co-creating solutions for long-term impact
- Philanthropists are increasingly interested in being involved in the design and structuring of social solutions.
- Moving beyond financial giving
- Philanthropists are increasingly sharing their social capital, including expertise and networks to further the causes they care about. By sharing their skills and strategic advice, they enable recipient organizations to build their capacity, grow and create greater impact.
- Adopting an ecosystem perspective
- Philanthropists are starting to consider how to address the root causes of systemic social and economic challenges, as opposed to treating the symptoms.
- Responding to changing needs on the ground and developments in the broader ecosystem
- Effective philanthropists stay connected to needs on the ground by engaging with local communities and staying abreast of changes and developments. They also stay connected to the broader landscape to understand how macro changes such as climate change and pandemics may affect the causes and communities they are seeking to impact.
- Harnessing the risk appetite of philanthropy to generate new solutions
- Compared to most, philanthropists have more latitude to fund high-risk, out-of-the-box ideas in the hope of generating scalable solutions for transformative impact. They are increasingly using philanthropic dollars as risk capital to build new solutions to existing problems alongside the public, private and social sectors.
The white paper "A Generation of Change-Makers" is available at http://credit-suisse.com/media/assets/apac/docs/phil-connect-2022-avpn-whitepaper.pdf
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