# Adrian Beney sounds note of practical optimism about major donors

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/10/15/adrian-beney-sounds-note-practical-optimism-about-major-donors/
- Published: 2008-10-15T21:45:33+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

Every now and again you come across a refreshing dose of common sense. I had that
feeling when I read a post about major donors and the current credit crisis by Adrian
Beney on the [prospect-research-uk](http://groups.yahoo.com/group/prospect-research-uk)
discussion forum.

Reprinted with permission, here is Adrian’s comment on 14 October 2008:

“While clearly many people will have lost money, I am sure that as many of the super
wealthy will not have done. One of my colleagues interviewed a potential donor for
a client about two weeks ago. That interviewee described this current situation 
as “a poor man’s crisis.”

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“And he’s right; if you have enough wealth to have a reasonable amount in cash at
the right moment – and most of the really wealthy should have – then now is a phenomenal
buying opportunity. Barclays is already 20% above its nadir, and is up 12.4% just
today.

“The people who will be hurting are those with lots of their wealth in assets that
they can’t just sell, like commercial property, and those whose wealth is still 
tied up in single companies whose shares have tanked recently.

“Philip Green is not talking with Baugur for nothing…..

The lesson for us: an understanding of the nature of wealth, where it comes from,
how people make it and how people hold it. And for the fundraisers is to stick with
theior potential donors through bad times as well as fair ones. When the Korean 
economy faltered a few years ago the UK Universities that profitted were the ones
who took the long term view. A bit like Warren Buffet – now he knows a thing or 
two….”

That assessment fits well with a couple of conversations I had recently with charities
who talked about the attitudes of their major donors whose wealth ranked above the
billion pound mark. These people were not unduly worried, I was told, and were most
unlikely to cut back on their giving.

www.iainmore.com

 * **[Lord Ashcroft to bequeathe 80% of assets to charitable foundation](https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/10/22/lord-ashcroft-bequeathe-80-assets-charitable-foundation/)**(
   22 October 2008)
 * **[Million-pound donors report due out next week](https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/11/01/millionpound-donors-report-due-out-next-week/)**(
   1 November 2008)
 * **[Interview with Jon Brooks of The Big Give](https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/12/15/interview-jon-brooks-big-give/)**(
   15 December 2008)