The reputation of Koda Capital, Australia’s largest independent wealth management firm with more than $10 billion of client assets under management, has been built upon an ethos of doing things differently.
Finding solutions and creating opportunities for better outcomes are hard-wired into the way the company does business. And that’s not just building wealth for clients, but also helping them give it away.
“We’ve always believed in the importance of structured giving and its positive influence on our society,” explains Paul Heath, Koda Capital CEO.
“Doing what we can to help grow philanthropic giving in Australia is a fundamental part of Koda’s DNA.”
Philanthropy & Social Capital has been one of Koda’s core service offerings since its establishment 10 years ago. In 2023 Koda turned the spotlight on its own giving aspirations and the latent potential within the team.
Two objectives were top of mind as the firm began exploring corporate giving structures and opportunities.
“When we first began thinking about what our foundation might look like, we knew we wanted to empower our people to follow their passions and support the causes they care about,” Paul explains.
“And second, we wanted to create a lasting legacy for our people, their families and our firm.”
Unable to find a structure that matched their ambitions, Koda turned to Australian Communities Foundation for guidance.
Working in strategic partnership, Australian Communities Foundation helped design and deliver a vehicle that enables Koda team members to become structured givers in their own right, rather than reverting to the centralised decision-making model most often associated with corporate philanthropy.
“Leveraging the existing infrastructure and deep expertise of the Australian Communities Foundation team was critical to bringing this innovative model to fruition,” Paul says.
Corporate giving for educational equity: GHD Foundation
GHD has a long history of supporting communities. The firm is now extending its corporate giving through its own foundation with support from ACF Advisory.