Answers, simply.

Benefund is an Australian platform that lets you build a permanent charitable fund. Your money is invested professionally; the yield is distributed to your chosen charities every quarter, automatically and tax-deductibly. Your principal stays invested forever.

It's the same model used by university endowments and major foundations — just made accessible to individuals starting at $50.

A regular donation is spent the moment it's received. With Benefund, your contribution becomes invested capital. The investment yield is what's given to charity — meaning the same dollar gives, then gives again, then gives forever.

Sign up at app.benefund.com.au. The process takes about ten minutes and includes verifying your identity, choosing your investment strategy, picking your charities, and setting up your initial contribution. You can begin with as little as $50.

$50 to open your fund. There is no minimum balance after that, and no requirement to maintain regular contributions — though regular contributions are how most contributors meaningfully grow their fund's giving capacity.

Currently, yes. Benefund is structured under Australian financial services and charity regulation, and our partner charities are Australian DGR-endorsed organisations. We may expand internationally in future, but at launch we serve Australian residents only.

You choose: weekly, fortnightly, or monthly recurring direct debits, plus optional one-off top-ups at any time. Contributors using their employer's Benefund programme often have contributions deducted on each payday.

Yes — anytime, in the app. Increase, decrease, change frequency, or pause entirely. Your fund stays open and continues to invest and distribute regardless of your contribution status.

Yes. There is no upper limit on contributions. Lump-sum contributions are added to your fund's invested base immediately and start generating yield in the next investment cycle.

Yes — many of our employer partners match employee contributions. Matching contributions are also deposited directly into your Benefund and grow alongside your own. The match is yours to keep, even if you change employers.

You can use Benefund independently — no employer involvement is needed. Some contributors also choose to introduce Benefund to their HR or CSR team. We're happy to help with that conversation; just email us via the contact page.

Your contributions are pooled with other Benefund members and invested under the oversight of an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL). You choose one of three strategies — Conservative, Balanced, or Growth — and your individual allocation is tracked separately within the pooled fund.

Indicative target returns are approximately 5% per annum (Conservative), 7.5% (Balanced), and 9% (Growth), measured before fees. These are forward-looking estimates only and not guaranteed. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance, and actual returns will vary.

Yes, at any time. Strategy changes apply to your future investment activity. Existing investments are gradually reallocated over the following one to two months to minimise market timing risk.

Investment returns are not guaranteed and your fund's value will fluctuate with market conditions. However, your funds are held in custody by a regulated custodian, segregated from Benefund's operating accounts, and protected by Australian financial services regulation. Custody arrangements are independently audited annually.

Any charity in our partner directory — currently 200+ Australian organisations across health, education, environment, social welfare, and the arts. Every partner is registered with the ACNC and endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) by the ATO.

Yes. Choose as many as you like and set the percentage split between them. You can adjust your splits or change charities at any time in the app.

Quarterly — at the end of March, June, September, and December. Each quarter we calculate the distributable yield from your fund, divide it according to your splits, and transfer it to your chosen charities along with all required tax documentation.

You can choose what percentage of your fund's annual yield is distributed each year — between 75% and 100%. The default is 100%. The remainder (if any) reinvests into your fund, gently growing your fund's giving capacity over time.

Because Benefund is a giving product, not a wealth-building product. The 75% floor ensures every contributor is meaningfully giving every year, while still allowing some reinvestment for those who want their fund to grow over time.

If a partner charity loses its DGR endorsement or is otherwise removed, we notify you and pause distributions to that organisation. You'll be prompted to redirect those distributions to another charity in your portfolio.

The amount distributed from your fund to DGR-endorsed charities each financial year is tax-deductible as a charitable gift. Your initial contribution is not directly tax-deductible (because it's invested, not given) — but every dollar of yield distributed in your name is.

Benefund issues consolidated annual tax statements showing all distributions made on your behalf in each financial year.

No. Benefund issues ATO-compliant gift receipts automatically and stores them in your account. They're available for download at any time, and we send a consolidated annual statement before the end of each financial year.

Investment returns within your fund are subject to applicable Australian tax law. Benefund handles tax obligations at the fund level so your reported tax-deductible giving is the net amount distributed to DGR charities. Detailed tax reporting accompanies your annual statement.

Employer matching contributions are tax-deductible to the employer. The yield from employer-matched portions of your fund, when distributed to DGR charities, is tax-deductible to the contributor receiving the gift receipt — typically the employer or you, depending on the match's structure.

Individual contributors pay a single management fee of 0.85% per annum on assets under management. There are no setup fees, no transaction fees, no performance fees, no early withdrawal penalties, and no hidden costs.

A percentage fee aligns Benefund's interests with yours: as your fund grows, the absolute fee grows in proportion, but our incentive is to grow the fund's giving capacity, which requires growing the fund itself. A flat fee would penalise small contributors disproportionately.

The 0.85% fee is deducted from investment returns before yield distribution is calculated. It does not come from your principal — your principal is preserved.

No. Charity partners pay nothing to participate in Benefund. Distributions arrive in full, with full tax-deductible status preserved.

Yes. Benefund operates under an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) and is subject to ASIC oversight. Our charity partners are registered with the ACNC and endorsed by the ATO as Deductible Gift Recipients.

Investment management is conducted by qualified, AFSL-licensed professionals operating under a documented investment policy and continuous compliance oversight. The Responsible Entity meets all capital adequacy and reporting requirements set by ASIC.

Every partner charity's ACNC registration and DGR endorsement is verified at onboarding and re-verified before every quarterly distribution. Charities under active ACNC enforcement action are paused immediately and re-evaluated when the action concludes.

Member funds are held separately from Benefund's operating accounts in regulated custody. In the event of corporate change or wind-down, member assets are protected — they are not part of Benefund's general assets. The successor entity (or a regulator-appointed administrator) would manage continuity of fund operations.

Yes. You can close your fund at any time. Your entire balance is returned to your nominated bank account, less any outstanding fees. Note that any earlier tax deductions claimed on distributions are retained — only the principal you've contributed is returned.

Some contributors prefer to leave their fund open and pause contributions, allowing the fund to keep distributing yield even when not actively contributing.

Your fund is part of your estate. You can nominate a beneficiary in the app — a person, an existing charity, or a new Benefund opened for someone else. In the absence of a nomination, the fund is dealt with according to your will, just like any other asset.

Many contributors choose to simply allow their fund to continue distributing to their chosen charities indefinitely, structured as a simple bequest in their will.

Yes — in the app and on the web, in real time. Every contribution, every fee, every yield calculation, every distribution to every charity is visible and downloadable. We send a quarterly summary email and an annual statement at the end of each financial year.

Both are changed in your account settings. Charity changes apply to your next distribution. Strategy changes apply to future investment activity, with existing positions gradually reallocated.

Email hello@benefund.com.au or use the contact form. Email support typically responds within one business day. Members on the Heritage tier (or via Heritage employer programmes) receive priority support.