Brethren Foundation increases safety of client assets

Photo courtesy of BBT

BBT President Nevin Dulabaum and Director of Foundation Steve Mason lead a webinar with the District Executives to announce that Brethren Foundation Inc. is increasing its protection of client assets through the formation of Brethren Foundation Funds Inc.

The Brethren Foundation announces the creation of Brethren Foundation Funds Inc., a new 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation affiliated with BFI to hold all organizational (including congregational) client assets.

This new organizational structure will separate organizational client assets from the obligations and liabilities of BFI and its deferred gift program. “Although we believe that we currently offer a safe platform for invested assets and the risk to organizational client assets is low, we also believe this is an opportunity to provide an additional layer of protection for these assets,” says Steve Mason, director of BFI.

Functionally everything will continue to operate as it has. The same staff will support the same investment program with the same investment options and the same program features. After the transition period and with the exception of being branded “Brethren Foundation Funds Inc.,” this program enhancement will be invisible to clients.

A process, which has been developed with the guidance of legal counsel to be as simple as possible, will be initiated soon to move all organizational client assets from BFI to BFFI. A representative of each organizational client, authorized to initiate transactions on behalf of the client, will be required to complete a simple form giving approval to move the assets from BFI to BFFI. Direct communication between BFI and the primary contact for each organizational client will begin soon; please watch for more information on this in the very near future.

All deferred gift accounts (charitable gift annuities, charitable trusts, and charitable gift funds) will remain with BFI and BFI will serve as the administrator for BFFI.

Please contact Steve Mason, director of the Brethren Foundation, with questions or comments.  He can be reached at 847-622-3369 or smason@cobbt.org

-- Jean Bednar, director of communications for Brethren Benefit Trust (BBT), provided this release.

Source: 9/9/2014 Newsline