[Image: x / @mackenziescott]
In her quest to spend the billions she received as part of the divorce settlement from Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos, MacKenzie Scott has given large, unrestricted gifts to more than 2,450 nonprofits over the past six years.
The 54-year-old donated over $2 billion in 2024 alone, bringing her total gifts to $19.2 billion since 2019. Look at her, she is the only face of a good billionaire.
Now, a new three-year analysis from the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) finds that Scott’s no-strings-attached gifts, with a median size of $5 million, have had a “transformative effect” on nonprofits by helping them expand their impact and become more financially stable.
CEP released the research earlier this month after surveying over 800 organizations that received donations from Scott from June to July 2024, per Fortune.
The overwhelming majority of nonprofit leaders, 93%, reported that Scott’s grant moderately or significantly strengthened their ability to carry out their mission. Most, 90%, said the gift bolstered their financial positions, while more than 60% said they used the grant to establish credibility with other funders.
The grants have also expanded nonprofits’ operating budgets and have helped them provide more of an impact on their communities while also improving their own employee’s well-being, the study notes.
Take Kaboom!, for example—a nonprofit on a mission to build playgrounds in communities that need them. Thanks to a jaw-dropping $14 million donation from Scott in 2021, the organisation more than doubled its annual operating budget. Talk about levelling up!
Then there’s the South Texas Food Bank. In 2020, Scott dropped $9 million into their funds, and the impact was massive. They went from distributing 14 million pounds of food in 2019 to a staggering 26 million in 2020. CEO Alma Boubel told USA Today that the donation helped them keep food distribution steady at around 20 million pounds annually from 2021 to 2024—all while giving their 42-person team free healthcare.
And that’s just a slice of the bigger picture. A study found that Scott’s donations helped 85% of nonprofit recipients expand their programs and gave 52% the ability to better meet the needs of their communities.
“Few funders have the resources to give at the level that MacKenzie Scott is giving, but every funder can learn from her fascinating approach,” Phil Buchanan, president of CEP, stated in a press release.
Nonprofit tax filings also tell the story—organisations that received Scott’s gifts ended up with twice the cash reserves of similar nonprofits.
So, how does Scott pick where her money goes? She’s got a behind-the-scenes process she calls “quiet research,” carefully vetting nonprofits based on their size, mission, and track record. The bulk of her grants (44%) went to human services, with education (41%) and health (35%) close behind. And unlike many major donors, she lets organisations decide how to use the funds—no strings attached.
Of course, not everyone sees this as a perfect system. More than half (53%) of nonprofits worry that Scott’s generosity might make other donors back off, thinking they no longer need support. And over 60% fear a “funding cliff” down the line—a sudden drop in financial backing once Scott’s donation runs out.
Even with these concerns, one thing’s clear: Scott’s giving style is shaking up what it means to be a billionaire in a big way.
In 2019, she received approximately $38 billion through her divorce settlement and pledged to donate at least half of her wealth to charity.
Scott signed the Giving Pledge that year, writing that she had “a disproportionate amount of money to share” and would keep donating “until the safe is empty.”
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Scott is worth around $40.2 billion and is the 41st richest person in the world.
[Source: Fortune]
