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The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$469k
Granted FY2025still arriving
186
Grants FY2025still arriving
33
States reached
$103k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0197% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2018 to 2025.

Health$777kPhilanthropy$217kArts & Culture$183kHuman Services$167kRecreation & Sports$145kEducation$136kAnimals$109kEnvironment$102kOther$0
02FY2025 · 186 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k172 grants · $172k
  • $10k–50k13 grants · $194k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $103k
$500
Median grant
33
States reached
$1.7M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CHILDREN'S CANCER CONNECTION$102,805
MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION$30,000
GREAT OUTDOORS FOUNDATION$30,000
MERCYONE DES MOINES FOUNDATION$25,000
VARIETY - THE CHILDRENS CHARITY$15,400
EVERYSTEP FOUNDATION$12,750
GIGI'S PLAYHOUSE DES MOINES$10,750
DOROTHY'S HOUSE$10,250
UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWA$10,000
DES MOINES CAROUSEL FOUNDATION$10,000
CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION$10,000
BLANK CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL$10,000
GENESIS YOUTH FOUNDATION$10,000
GREATER DES MOINES PUBLIC ART FOUNDATION$10,000
WEST DES MOINES CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION$7,500
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY18–25, $225k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 95% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%ANN'S HEART: $400 → 6%ANGEL REACH: $1k → 9%FLAT RIVER OUTREACH MINISTRIES: $400 → 11%GRACE KLEIN COMMUNITY INC: $750 → 16%HUMANITARIAN SERVICE PROJECT: $400 → 7%Angel Reach: $1k → 9%METROCEST SERVICES: $1k → 14%Flat River Outreach Ministries: $400 → 11%Humanitarian Service Project: $400 → 7%Pinky Swear Foundaiton: $5k → 11%Shoes That Fit: $1k → 14%Flat River Outreach Ministries: $400 → 11%Humanitarian Service Project: $400 → 7%PINKY SWEAR FOUNDATION: $5k → 11%FAMILY PROMISE OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY: $1k → 9%CHARLOTTES WINGS: $600 → 8%SANCTUM HOUSE: $400 → 8%SHORT YEARS PARTNERSHIP: $1k → 6%DES MOINES REFUGEE SUPPORT: $3k → 6%LUTHERAN SERVICES IN IOWA: $2k → 10%WEST DES MOINES HUMAN SERVICES FRIENDS FOUNDATION: $1k → 10%Children & Families of Iowa: $1k → 10%HOMES OF OAKRIDGE HUMAN SERVICES (OAKRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES): $500 → 10%CHILDREN & FAMILIES OF IOWA: $500 → 10%CHILDREN & FAMILIES OF IOWA: $500 → 10%CHILDREN & FAMILIES OF IOWA: $500 → 10%JOPPA: $26k → 10%YOUNG WOMENS RESOURCE CENTER: $3k → 10%DOROTHY'S HOUSE: $25k → 10%DOROTHY'S HOUSE: $10k → 10%DOROTHY'S HOUSE: $10k → 10%YOUNG WOMENS RESOURCE CENTER: $400 → 10%CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION: $10k → 10%ChildServe Foundation: $3k → 10%ChildServe Foundation: $400 → 10%PUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $35k → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $26k → 10%PUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $25k → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $6k → 10%PUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $5k → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $1k → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $1k → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $1k → 10%BLOOD SWEAT & BEERS: $750 → 10%FAMILY CANCER NETWORK: $750 → 10%BLOOD SWEAT & BEERS: $750 → 10%FAMILY CANCER NETWORK: $750 → 10%Family Cancer Network: $750 → 10%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

WA
ID
MT
ND
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
NV
WY
SD
IA
IN
OH
PA
CA
UT
CO
NE
MO
KY
VA
MD
AZ
NM
AR
TN
NC
SC
DC
HI
OK
AL
GA
TX
FL
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

86%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.1M · 156 repeat orgs$332k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +22% since the first grant, against +1% for those funded once.

156 repeat relationships: 81 still active in FY2025, 75 since wound down; 101 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

156
148

Total granted

$2.1M
$190k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+22%
+1%

Still filing today

65%
59%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 70% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $142k went to new ones.

50%100%’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesHealthEducationPhilanthropyYouth DevelopmentAnimalsOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • VT
    VARIETY - THE CHILDREN'S CHARITY OF IOWA
    7× · 2018–2025 · $239k · revenue +35%
  • CC
    CHILDREN'S CANCER CONNECTION
    8× · 2018–2025 · $109k · revenue +28%
  • GO
    GREAT OUTDOORS FOUNDATION
    4× · 2022–2025 · $85k · revenue +5%

Funded once

  • AE
    AGC EDUCATION AND RESEARCH FOUNDATION INCgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $60k · revenue +88%
  • NA
    NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue -22%
  • HC
    HCI CARE SERVICES
    one grant, 2018 · $7k
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Common Good Iowa

Common good iowa engages iowans to create and advocate for research-based public policy that makes life better and more equitable for all who make iowa home.

—
2
Iowa Credit Union Foundation

Founded in 1995 as the philanthropic arm of the iowa credit union league and guided by the credit union philosophy of "people helping people", the iowa credit union foundation (the foundation) works to champion financial well-being for…

Unclassified
3
United Way of East Central Iowa

Unite the caring power of communities to invest in effective solutions to improve people's lives.

Philanthropy
4
Unity Healthcare Foundation

To provide financial assistance to unity healthcare to help enable it to carry out its exempt function of providing health care to the community.

Philanthropy
5
Midwest Dairy Association

Midwest dairy works with others to give consumers an excellent dairy experience increasing sales, fostering innovation, and inspiring consumer confidence of dairy products and practices.

—
6
Feeding South Dakota

To eliminate hunger in south dakota.

Food & Nutrition
7
Iowa City Hospice Inc

To provide high-quality and compassionate care to community members approaching the end of life.

Human Services
8
Family Promise of Greater Des Moines

To provide shelter and services to families experiencing homelessness

—
9
University of Iowa Facilities Corporation

The university of iowa facilities corporation acquires and holds property for the benefit and use of the university of iowa.

—
10
The Foundation for Health Care Continuums

The mission of the foundation for health care continuums is to strengthen each community we serve by providing a wide spectrum of housing and health care services that honor the evolving, aging population.

Health
11
Iowa Health System

To improve the health of the people and communities we serve.

Health
12
Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce

Our mission is to inspire the iowa city area to be greater by: 1) elevating business, 2) investing in strategic initiatives, and 3) advocating for the economic resiliency of the greater community.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Childserve Foundation Inc; the most unlike its peers is Iowa Rugby Collective Foundation. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

276 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 276 of the 411 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
44
Early backer (in before they grew)
270/276
Grantees still filing
137/276
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

EveryStep Foundation: $256,450 · OtherEveryStep FoundationVARIETY - THE CHILDREN'S CHARITY OF IOWA: $239,365 · OtherVARIETY - THE CHILDREN'S CHARITY OF IOWAEASTER SEALS OF IA: $162,383 · OtherEASTER SEALS OF IACHILDREN'S CANCER CONNECTION: $108,805 · OtherCHILDREN'S CANCER CONNECTIONAGC EDUCATION AND RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $60,000 · Other+123 more: $847,533 · Other+123 morePUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $65,000 · Human ServicesPUPPY JAKE…SCKIC Inc: $45,250 · Human ServicesSCKIC IncORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $35,000 · Human ServicesORCHARD PL…JOPPA: $26,108 · Human ServicesJOPPACHILDSERVE FOUNDATION INC: $12,900 · Human ServicesCHILDSERVE…PINKY SWEAR FOUNDATION: $10,200 · Human Services+10 more: $26,275 · Human Services+10 moreMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF IOWA INC: $30,000 · HealthAmerican Heart Association Inc: $29,050 · HealthWESLEYLIFE: $15,000 · HealthBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $13,875 · HealthELLIPSIS INC: $7,000 · HealthNATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS-IOWA INC: $5,700 · HealthORCHARD PLACE: $5,500 · HealthIOWA HEALTHIEST STATE INITIATIVE: $5,500 · Health+13 more: $22,820 · HealthGREAT OUTDOORS FOUNDATION: $85,000 · AnimalsBLANK PARK ZOO FOUNDATION INC: $11,000 · Animals+2 more: $3,000 · AnimalsBRAVO GREATER DES MOINES INC: $22,000 · Arts & CultureGREATER DES MOINES PUBLIC ART FOUNDATION: $20,000 · Arts & CultureDES MOINES METRO OPERA INC: $18,250 · Arts & CultureDES MOINES SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $12,500 · Arts & CultureDES MOINES COMMUNITY PLAYHOUSE: $9,000 · Arts & CultureHOYT SHERMAN PLACE FOUNDATION: $6,300 · Arts & Culture+4 more: $6,976 · Arts & CultureIOWA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $28,550 · EducationNATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS: $10,000 · EducationDMACC FOUNDATION: $8,500 · EducationHORIZON SCIENCE ACADEMY DES MOINES: $5,000 · EducationAGC OF IOWA FOUNDATION: $4,900 · EducationHERITAGE RANCH INC: $3,000 · EducationReaching Higher Iowa: $2,500 · Education+9 more: $12,200 · EducationDES MOINES PERFORMING ARTS: $39,500 · Community ImprovementWAUKEE FOUNDATION INC: $27,000 · Community ImprovementIOWA CENTER FOR ECONOMIC SUCCESS: $5,000 · Community Improvement+2 more: $2,150 · Community Improvement
Other$1,674,536Human Services$220,733Health$134,445Animals$99,000Arts & Culture$95,026Education$74,650Community Improvement$73,650

Showing the 200 largest grantees by grant value.

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetVARIETY - THE CHILDREN'S CHARITY OF IOWA: $239,365 over 7y, 4.6% of budgetCHILDREN'S CANCER CONNECTION: $108,805 over 8y, 6.6% of budgetGREAT OUTDOORS FOUNDATION: $85,000 over 4y, 0.6% of budgetPUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $65,000 over 3y, 6.7% of budgetAGC EDUCATION AND RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $60,000 over 1y, 4.7% of budgetSCKIC Inc: $45,250 over 3y, 1.8% of budgetDES MOINES PERFORMING ARTS: $39,500 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWA: $38,046 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $35,000 over 5y, 0.4% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF IOWA INC: $30,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetTHE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF GREATER DES MOINES: $29,400 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $29,050 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetIOWA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $28,550 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetJOPPA: $26,108 over 2y, 1.4% of budgetBRAVO GREATER DES MOINES INC: $22,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetIOWA COLLEGE FOUNDATION: $21,250 over 8y, 0.2% of budgetTHE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS FOUNDATION INC: $20,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetGREATER DES MOINES PUBLIC ART FOUNDATION: $20,000 over 2y, 1.8% of budgetCOMMUNITY FDN OF GREATER DES MOINES F/K/A GREATER DES MOINES COMMUNITY FDN: $18,700 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetDES MOINES METRO OPERA INC: $18,250 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetFAMILIES FORWARD: $18,050 over 3y, 1.8% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CENTRAL IOWA: $16,150 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetGREATER DES MOINES BOTANICAL GARDEN: $15,500 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetWESLEYLIFE: $15,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $13,875 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetCHILDSERVE FOUNDATION INC: $12,900 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetDES MOINES SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $12,500 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetBLANK PARK ZOO FOUNDATION INC: $11,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetPINKY SWEAR FOUNDATION: $10,200 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetTHE DES MOINES CAROUSEL FOUNDATION: $10,000 over 1y, 17% of budgetNATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetDES MOINES COMMUNITY PLAYHOUSE: $9,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetIOWA STATE FAIR FOUNDATION: $9,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetDMACC FOUNDATION: $8,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL IOWA: $8,389 over 6y, 0.3% of budgetMID-IOWA COUNCIL OF BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA INC: $8,350 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetFOOD BANK OF IOWA: $8,303 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetCAN PLAY: $8,150 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetTHE SURETY FOUNDATION INC: $8,100 over 5y, 1.7% of budgetELLIPSIS INC: $7,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetGIRL SCOUTS OF GREATER IOWA: $6,562 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetHOYT SHERMAN PLACE FOUNDATION: $6,300 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetHOPE MINISTRIES: $6,175 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS-IOWA INC: $5,700 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetRAISE THE BAR INITIATIVE: $5,662 over 5y, 3.3% of budgetORCHARD PLACE: $5,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetIOWA HEALTHIEST STATE INITIATIVE: $5,500 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetHOSPICE OF THE CHESAPEAKE FOUNDATION INC: $5,100 over 5y, 0.0% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds VARIETY - THE CHILDREN'S CHARITY OF IOWA ↗
  • Who funds CHILDREN'S CANCER CONNECTION ↗
  • Who funds GREAT OUTDOORS FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds PUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds AGC EDUCATION AND RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds SCKIC Inc ↗
  • Who funds DES MOINES PERFORMING ARTS ↗
  • Who funds UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWA ↗
  • Who funds ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF IOWA INC ↗
  • Who funds THE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF GREATER DES MOINES ↗
  • Who funds American Heart Association Inc ↗
  • Who funds IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds WAUKEE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds JOPPA ↗
  • Who funds BRAVO GREATER DES MOINES INC ↗
  • Who funds IOWA COLLEGE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds GREATER DES MOINES PUBLIC ART FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds COMMUNITY FDN OF GREATER DES MOINES F/K/A GREATER DES MOINES COMMUNITY FDN ↗
  • Who funds DES MOINES METRO OPERA INC ↗
  • Who funds FAMILIES FORWARD ↗
  • Who funds BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CENTRAL IOWA ↗
  • Who funds GREATER DES MOINES BOTANICAL GARDEN ↗
  • Who funds WESLEYLIFE ↗
  • Who funds BLOOD CANCER UNITED INC ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

EMC Insurance Foundat…Prairie Meadows Race …Ita Group FoundationThe West Bancorporati…Meredith Corporation …Golf Charitable Found…Community Fdn of Grea…Athene Charitable Fou…Variety - the Childre…United Way of Central…R & R Realty Group Fo…Pella Rolscreen Found…
EMC Insurance FoundationIA89.8× affinity43 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: EMC Insurance Foundation · Prairie Meadows Race Track and Casino Inc · Ita Group Foundation · The West Bancorporation Foundation Inc · Meredith Corporation Foundation · Golf Charitable Foundation of Greater Des Moines · Community Fdn of Greater Des Moines F/K/A Greater Des Moines Community Fdn · Athene Charitable Foundation · Variety - the Children's Charity of Iowa · United Way of Central Iowa · R & R Realty Group Foundation · Pella Rolscreen Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 100%1%5%11%20%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 7%
  • Community Rehabilitation Center in: 26% of income from government
  • Oregon Food Bank: 21% of income from government
  • Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Inc: 7% of income from government
  • Best Buddies International Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Food for the Poor Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Shriners Hospitals for Children: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
10get no government money at all
51report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
typical government reliance, FY20–25
How this is measured
Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 411 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

How this is measured
Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Merchants Bonding Company’s filings →

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home