It’s what (and who) we know

Being effective in philanthropy takes time and resources. We have the right experience, knowledge and network to help you make the most impact in your giving.

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We know philanthropy

UBS is unique in having a global network of foundations staffed with philanthropy experts. And our foundation has a track record of almost two decades.

We partner with UBS finance experts

Our ability to access the core finance competencies of UBS helps us achieve greater impact in solving the pressing social issues of our time.

We know our philanthropist partners

We work side by side with philanthropists, providing them the network and access to experts they need to get the most from their giving.

We make philanthropist contributions go further

UBS covers all the costs for the administration, planning, review and continued development of programs. And in some cases co-funds.

We’re driven by data

We can tell you exactly where funding is going and the impact it is having, since we demand detailed reports and independent monitoring from our program partners.

We’re active globally

But we do understand the local landscapes of our programs and support partners who live in the communities they’re helping.

We’re harnessing the power of partnerships* by collaborating with philanthropists, program implementers, UBS’s finance experts, enterprise, academic institutions and governments to drive impactful philanthropy.

The many challenges the world faces today are so complex and wide-ranging that no one organization or philanthropist can possibly solve them alone. To drive long-term social impact and systemic change, we need to work together. And it’s critical to seek partners everywhere – both for finding the next breakthrough solution and for bringing more private sector resources to the development space.

Tom Hall,
Head of Social Impact & Global Head of Philanthropy Services

Here are some of the ways we’re driving greater impact through our relationships with others.

Raising expectations

We take the journey together with our philanthropist partners – by creating a tailored portfolio or bringing philanthropists together through collective portfolios.

Trusting partners

We’re creating equitable partnerships and building capacity of programs that evidence powerful outcomes. Our program partners understand the local context.

Building bridges

We bring on board private sector experts, academic partners and performance managers, building alliances between the public and private sectors. So our program partners get input to succeed.

Transforming funding

We’re collaborating with finance experts, other philanthropic organizations, governments and program implementers to develop innovative social finance vehicles.

Aiding outcomes

With dialogue and visits from our program directors, connections with performance managers and independent evaluators, we help program partners drive outcomes.

Leading dialogue

We’re regularly conducting research and adding to our thought leadership in the field. And we’re supporting advocacy efforts of our program partners.

Examples of our front line partners

Examples of private grantmaking partners

* UBS Optimus Foundation collaborates with investors, service providers and others, but such relationships are not partnerships in the legal sense of the term and nothing in this document should be construed as giving rise to such an inference.

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The UBS Optimus Foundation is not accepting or reviewing unsolicited proposals at this time. This is out of respect for your time as much as ours as we don't have the capacity to fund further programs at the moment. Please check in again at a later stage. Thank you!