Contents
History
The Truist Foundation was established in 1973 as the SunTrust Foundation. SunTrust Foundation was the charitable foundation of SunTrust Bank, originally founded in 1891 as the Trust Company of Georgia. 2 In 2001, the earliest year with a publicly available disclosure in the ProPublica database, the Foundation provided $3.9 million in grants. 3 After an expansion in 2012, the group provided over $14 million in grants in 2015. 4
In 2019, SunTrust Bank and BB&T Bank merged to form the Truist Financial Corporation with a headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2020, the SunTrust Foundation was renamed the Truist Foundation. 1 5
In 2020, Truist Foundation’s CEO and Chairman Kelly King released a statement in response to the death of George Floyd, claiming the Foundation would work to “build a stronger, more equitable company and society.” 6 In 2020, the Foundation donated $25 million in grants towards COVID-relief efforts. 7 8
As of 2024, Truist Financial Corporation claims to have roughly 15 million clients across the United States, operating in 17 states and Washington, D.C. with over half a trillion dollars in assets. 1 5
Grants
The Truist Foundation claims to allocate its grants towards three areas: “building career pathways to economic mobility,” “strengthening small businesses,” and “thriving communities.” In 2023, donations to the three domains were $26 million, $15 million, and $12 million respectively. That year, the regions that received the most in grants included Atlanta, Miami, Charlotte, Nashville, and Memphis. 9
In 2019 and 2020, the Foundation gave roughly $20 million in grants to organizations claiming to provide aid for “marginalized neighborhoods.” 8
Hurricane Helene
Following Hurricane Helene in September 2024, the Foundation donated $1 million to organizations providing hurricane relief efforts including the IT Disaster Resource Center, the United Way Worldwide (UWW), the American Red Cross, and the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s Atlantic Hurricane Season Recovery Fund. 10
Where It Starts
In 2023, the Foundation launched “Where It Starts,” a grant program it claims will provide career opportunities to “underserved communities.” 11 The program is partnered with Living Cities and Main Street America. 12 11
Purpose Built Communities
In 2018, the “Purpose Built Communities” nonprofit was created with the claimed goal of ending “intergenerational poverty.” 13 That year, the program produced “racial equity ambassadors” to hold conversations on racial equity in local communities. In 2020, the Foundation provided a $7 million grant to the group in response to protests following the death of George Floyd. 13
Leadership
Lynette Bell has been the president of the Truist Foundation since 2019. Prior to this, he worked at SunTrust Bank in several positions for nearly 26 years including as corporate Community Reinvestment Act officer and senior vice president. 14 7
Raj Borsellino has served as the director of national philanthropy and community relations since June 2022 and also sits on the board of the Maryland Philanthropy Network. Borsellino previously worked at the Robin Hood Foundation as a senior program officer. 15
Bill Rogers is the chair of the Foundation and the president and chief executive officer of Truist. Rogers also sits on the board of the Boys and Girls Club of America. 16