What International Community Foundation does

International Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity (EIN 33-0457858) founded in 1990 and headquartered in National City, California. It facilitates cross-border philanthropy between U.S. donors — including individuals, families, and companies — and nonprofit organizations across Latin America, with active programmatic reach into Mexico, seven Central American countries, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, and Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. The foundation also operates Olivewood Gardens & Learning Center, a Type 1 supporting organization established in 2007 that delivers community education programming in the National City area.

The foundation's core offerings are structured around five products: Donor Advised Funds, Friends of Funds, International Grantmaking, Resource Mobilization, and Community Power and Leadership. Its technology stack is fully third-party and non-proprietary, consisting of Fundraise Up for online giving, Stripe for payment processing, Google Analytics for web measurement, and CookieYes for cookie compliance. There is no internally developed platform, API, or data product. The organization runs lean, with 11-50 employees, and reports a 4-star Charity Navigator rating alongside cumulative grantmaking of more than $145M across 334 grants to 863 organizations since inception.

Revenue mechanics for the foundation are typical of a community foundation: management fees on administered funds (0.5% on endowed balances, 6% on non-endowed balances), supplemented by direct charitable contributions and in-kind support such as the 2006 property donation from Christy Walton. In FY2025 the foundation granted out $18.1M, which is the most concrete revenue-adjacent scale signal available; the foundation has also expanded its product surface via a FreeWill partnership for planned giving and launched an interactive donation map to improve donor transparency.

Name

International Community Foundation

Legal name

The International Community Foundation

Website

https://icfdn.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

International Community Foundation is a National City, California-based 501(c)(3) public charity founded in 1990 that channels U.S. donor capital — via donor advised funds, international grantmaking, and resource mobilization — to vetted nonprofit organizations across Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cross-Border Philanthropy Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB), Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) Sponsors (BPAGAKAF), Trust Funds & Multi-Donor Pooled Funds (BPADAOAE), Philanthropy & Foundations Advisory (Donor-Advised Funds, Endowments) (FSAAABAH), Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

Keywords

• Cross-border philanthropy
• Donor advised funds
• International grantmaking
• Charitable giving services
• Nonprofit fund administration

Headquarters

HQ city

National City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donor Advised Fund Management Fees: ICF generates revenue through annual management fees charged on Donor Advised Funds. Endowment funds charge 0.5% annually while non-endowment funds charge 6% annually. The minimum initial contribution to open a fund is $5,000. These fees cover administrative costs, fund management services, and grantmaking infrastructure.
2. Friends of Fund Management Fees: Non-U.S. organizations can establish 'Friends of' Funds at ICF to attract tax-deductible donations from U.S. donors. Endowment versions charge 0.5% while non-endowment versions charge 6% annually. No minimum donation is required, allowing organizations to attract donors of all sizes.
3. Charitable Donations: ICF receives charitable donations from individual donors, families, and companies which are then granted to vetted nonprofit organizations in Latin America and beyond. Donations are tax-deductible for U.S. taxpayers. The foundation granted $18.1 million in Fiscal Year 2025 to initiatives in Latin America and the U.S.A.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ICF administers Donor Advised Funds and "Friends of" Funds that enable U.S. donors and non-U.S. nonprofits to channel tax-deductible charitable contributions to vetted Latin American community initiatives, supported by international grantmaking, due diligence, and capacity-building programs. Since 1990, it has granted over $145 million across 863+ organizations, charging annual management fees of 0.5% on endowed funds and 6% on non-endowed funds.

Product overview

International Community Foundation (ICF) is a nonprofit organization offering a suite of cross-border philanthropic services rather than a traditional software product. Its core offerings consist of Donor Advised Funds (endowed and non-endowed) and "Friends of" Funds, which are fund administration vehicles that enable donors and nonprofits to make tax-deductible international donations. These are supported by ICF's international grantmaking infrastructure, resource mobilization platforms (endowment funds, crowdfunding, fiscal sponsorship), and community power and leadership programs. As a supporting organization, ICF also operates Olivewood Gardens & Learning Center, a Type 1 supporting organization focused on nutrition education and environmental stewardship. ICF does not offer a software product, API, or technology platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Donor Advised Funds

Quantifiable outcome

• $145+ million granted to support leaders on the ground since 1990
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Olivewood Gardens & Learning CentercoreOthers · 1 January 2007Olivewood Gardens & Learning Center is an ICF Type 1 supporting organization established in 2007 and located in National City, California. The organization connects and motivates youth and adults through sustainable agriculture, environmental stewardship, and nutrition education. ICF gifted the grounds to Olivewood in 2010 for their program activities. Both organizations maintain headquarters on the property. ICF continues to support and partner with Olivewood on programs and events.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Give2Asia: Operates a similar cross-border philanthropy platform for U.S. donors to support vetted nonprofits abroad; comparable in fund structure, due-diligence approach, and donor-facing services, though focused on Asia-Pacific rather than Latin America.
• The Tinker Foundation: Private grantmaking foundation focused exclusively on Latin America, Iberian Peninsula, and Antarctica with comparable programmatic priorities (environment, education, governance)—a direct thematic peer despite operating as a grantmaking foundation rather than intermediary.
• CAF America: Charities Aid Foundation America is a U.S. 501(c)(3) cross-border philanthropy intermediary that enables tax-deductible U.S. giving to international nonprofits—the closest direct comparable to ICF's donor-advised and Friends of fund model.
• Inter-American Foundation: Independent U.S. government agency making grants to community-led organizations throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, with overlapping grantmaking mission, region, and beneficiary profile—highly comparable in operating model and geography.
• National Philanthropic Trust: Major U.S. DAF sponsor offering donor-advised fund administration with international grantmaking capabilities; directly comparable in fund product, fee structure, and donor services, though at significantly greater scale.
• Foundation for a Just Society: Private grantmaking foundation supporting international human rights, including significant Latin America portfolio; comparable in operating model, mission focus, and grantmaking discipline even though it does not offer intermediary fund services.
• Resource Foundation: Small U.S. foundation facilitating cross-border philanthropy primarily to Latin America and the Caribbean, with similar regional specialization, donor-advised fund services, and community-partner support model.

Broad incumbents

• Schwab Charitable: Major U.S. DAF sponsor offering donor-advised funds that can be directed to international nonprofits; comparable in fund product structure but competes at national scale versus ICF's regional Latin America specialization.
• Charities Aid Foundation (CAF): Global cross-border philanthropy platform and parent of CAF America; offers comparable donor-advised and international giving services with broader geographic reach, including emerging-market giving infrastructure relevant to ICF's donor audience.
• Fidelity Charitable: Largest U.S. donor-advised fund sponsor with international grantmaking support; competes with ICF for the same U.S. donor pool seeking charitable vehicles, but operates at far greater scale with broader geographic mandate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-community-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about International Community Foundation