The Quadriga Plot Thickens
In its second installment on fundraising this week, CNN, via Anderson Cooper 360, again criticized the fundraising practices of Quadriga Art.
This time CNN says eleven charities “have been turned upside down” by millions of dollars of debt to Quadriga. For example, Help the Children in California received $32,000 out of hundreds of thousands raised. And the Saint Bonaventure Indian Mission and School in New Mexico received almost none of $9 million raised. Quadriga appears to have canceled the debts of these two charities after CNN began investigating.
CNN also disclosed that the Senate Finance Committee is now demanding three years of detailed financial information from Quadriga Art, expanding its investigation of Quadriga client, the Disabled Veterans National Foundation. Here’s the Senate letter.
Anderson Cooper comments on the series of reports by reporter Drew Griffin and producer David Fitzpatrick: “Each time it cannot get more stunning … I’m blown away!”
That’s an understatement.
As the full interview with Help the Children’s director makes clear, the problem begins when Quadriga starts to front the money required for new donor prospecting.
Virtually all charities face the challenge of financing the ‘money losing’ front-end investment required in most instances for prospecting. Reputable charities and their fundraising firms and consultants routinely take what are — hopefully — prudently calculated risks, based upon past performance, when they prospect … expecting to recoup and then profit from their investment.
But acquisition is getting tougher and tougher.
So The Agitator is planning to devote a steady stream of attention to the challenge of donor acquisition in the weeks ahead.
We’ll start tomorrow … unless CNN breaks more news on the fundraising front.
Tom
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