The Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation is a grantmaking nonprofit supported by billionaire hedge fund manager Daniel S. Loeb. The foundation supports both left-of-center and right-of-center organizations, and its recipients include nonprofits that seek to promote education, organizations defending women’s rights internationally, Jewish American cultural groups, neoconservative foreign-policy groups, and nonprofits that promote LGBT policies in the United States and Israel.

Background

The Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation was created in 2000 by billionaire Daniel S. Loeb. ¹ The foundation’s sole contributor is Daniel S. Loeb, the founder and CEO of Third Point Management, a New York-based hedge fund. ² Loeb has been referred to as an activist investor for purchasing controlling shares in struggling companies, followed by making drastic structural changes to such companies. ³

Finances

In 2019, the foundation received $5,404,097 in contributions, ⁴ collected $811,523 in income from dividends and interest from securities, ⁵ incurred $19,811,102 in expenses, ⁶ and held $63,231,197 in net assets. ⁷

Grantmaking

In 2019, the Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation made grants to nonprofits that support left-of-center criminal justice and policing policies, left-of-center groups that advocate for social policies based on racial categorizations, groups that promote neoconservative foreign policy, groups involved in education, groups that promote women’s rights internationally, Jewish American cultural and political groups, and nonprofits that promote LGBT rights in the United States and Israel. ⁸

Criminal Justice and Policing

In 2019, the Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation contributed to left-of-center nonprofits ⁹ that have advocated for enhanced oversight and limitations on policing ¹⁰ and nonprofits that advocate for changes to the criminal justice system that would prevent the incarceration of individuals who violate their probation or parole. ¹¹

In 2019, the foundation contributed to the Criminal Justice Reform Foundation (now Reform Alliance) ($1,000,000), Coalition for Public Safety ($500,000), National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) Foundation ($495,000), Brennan Center for Justice ($400,000), Vera Institute of Justice ($100,000), Council on Criminal Justice ($50,000), and Drug Policy Alliance ($3,000), among others. ¹²

Foreign Policy

In 2019, the foundation contributed to foreign policy organizations with center-right and neoconservative-interventionist views, ¹³ including the American Enterprise Institute ($100,000), Washington Institute for Near East Policy ($25,000), Institute for the Study of War ($25,000) and the Foreign Policy Association ($10,000). ¹⁵ including the NAACP ($250,000) and Anti-Defamation League (ADL) ($25,000). ¹⁶

Free Market Economics

In 2019, the foundation contributed to a number of center-right organizations that focus on promoting free market economic policies, ¹⁷ including the Manhattan Institute ($100,000) and the FreedomWorks Foundation ($100,000). ¹⁸

Education

In 2019, the foundation contributed to a number of universities and educational nonprofits, including Success Academy Charter Schools ($3,955,000), Brown University ($850,000), Teach for America – New York ($250,000), Columbia University ($200,000), the Foundation for Excellence in Education ($50,000), the American Federation For Children – Growth Fund ($50,000) and New York University ($10,000). ¹⁹

Abortion

In 2019 the foundation contributed to organizations that lobby for taxpayer funded support for abortions, ²⁰ including the Center for Reproductive Rights ($50,000), Planned Parenthood of New York City ($5,000), and Planned Parenthood of Hudson Peconic ($5,000). ²¹

Women’s Rights

In 2019, the foundation contributed to organizations that seek to promote gender equality, including organizations such as the AHA Foundation ($50,000) that opposes child marriage, forced marriages, female genital mutilation and honor killings; ²² Equality Now ($100,000); and the left-of-center New York Women’s Foundation ($15,000). ²³

LGBT Policy

In 2019, the foundation contributed to a number of nonprofits that focus on LGBT policy in the United States and Israel, ²⁴ including A Wider Bridge ($25,000) and the LGBT Center of New York. ²⁵

Jewish-American Organizations

In 2019, the foundation contributed to a number of nonprofits that provide services to the Jewish American community, including support for student travel to Israel through the Birthright Israel Foundation ($60,000), ²⁶ organizations that provide support services to Jews in the U.S. prison system ²⁷ such as the Aleph Institute ($200,000), ²⁸ organizations that advocate on issues of interest to the Jewish community such as the Jewish Council for Public Affairs ($10,000), and organizations that support Jewish life on college campuses throughout the United States including Columbia Barnard Hillel ($20,000) and Brown Hillel RSD ($5,000). ²⁹

Leadership

Daniel Loeb is the president ³⁰ and primary financial contributor of the Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. ³¹  Loeb is the founder of Third Point Management, a New York-based hedge fund which also serves as the entity that receives grant requests for the foundation. ³²

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3. Vardi, Nathan. “Daniel Loeb, Yahoo, And The Return Of The Corporate Raider” Forbes. May 15, 2012. Accessed May 9, 2023. https://www.forbes.com/sites/nathanvardi/2012/05/15/the-return-of-the-corporate-raider/?sh=5b27767cd8c4
4. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part I. Line 1.  2019.
5. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part I. Line 4.  2019.
6. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part I. Line 26. 2019
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8. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
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10. “Five Priorities for Police Reform” Council on Criminal Justice. https://counciloncj.foleon.com/policing/assessing-the-evidence/five-priorities
11. ^[1] “WHY PROBATION AND PAROLE” Reform Alliance. https://reformalliance.com/why-probation-and-parole/
12. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV. 2019.
13. “Foreign Policy and Defense” American Enterprise Institute. https://www.aei.org/policy-areas/foreign-and-defense-policy/

15. Race and Social Policy

    In 2019, the foundation contributed to organizations that have been accused of using race to criticize the Republican Party and conservative politicians, ¹⁴ Mandel, Bethany. “The Anti-Defamation League’s Sad Slide Into Just Another Left-Wing Pressure Group.” The Federalist. July 28, 2017. Accessed May 4, 2023. http://thefederalist.com/2017/07/28/anti-defamation-leagues-sad-slide-just-another-left-wing-pressure-group/

16. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
17. “About” Manhattan Institute. https://manhattan.institute/about
18. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV. 2019.
19. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
20. “United States” Center for Reproductive Rights. https://reproductiverights.org/our-regions/united-states/
21. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV. 2019.
22. “Protecting Women’s Rights” AHA Foundation. https://www.theahafoundation.org/protecting-womens-rights/
23. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
24. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV. 2019.
25. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
26. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
27. “About Us” Aleph Institute. https://aleph-institute.org/wp/about/
28. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV.  2019.
29. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part XV. 2019.
30. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation. Part VIII. Line 1.  2019.
31. “Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation” Inside Philanthropy.   https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/l-grants/margaret-and-daniel-loeb-foundation
32. “Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation” Inside Philanthropy.   https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/l-grants/margaret-and-daniel-loeb-foundation