Donating bitcoin to charity

How donating bitcoin directly to charity increases the size of your gift

Before you sell bitcoin and donate the after-tax proceeds, consider donating your bitcoin directly to charity. This model includes two significant benefits, both for you and the charity:

Your tax deduction will be equal to the fair market value of the donated bitcoin (as determined by a qualified appraisal).

Your gift to charity will be larger because instead of paying capital gains taxes, the 501(c)(3) charity will receive the full value of your contribution.

There’s another upside to donating bitcoin to a public charity with a donor-advised fund program such as Fidelity Charitable: the opportunity to recommend how the contribution is invested and potentially grow it tax-free, ultimately providing greater charitable/philanthropic support.