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Mutual Fund Gifts
As the mutual fund industry has grown over the years, the Virginia Commonwealth
University Foundation has seen a greater number of gifts of mutual fund shares each year.
While the process of gifting stocks and bonds is fairly easy, gifting of mutual fund
shares requires additional administrative effort on the part of the donor and the
Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation, as well as greater patience.
In general, mutual fund companies do not allow shareholders to transfer mutual fund shares
outside of the fund. The transfer of shares to and disposal of the shares by the
Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation must then take place at the mutual fund
company.
Most mutual fund companies have a standard type of share transfer form (e.g., A Transfer of
Shares to New Owner Form) that is completed by both the donor and the Foundation. Such
forms are obtained directly from the mutual fund company. The transfer form authorizes
the transfer of shares from the donor's account, opens an account for the Foundation
(the Foundation cannot open a mutual fund account without funding the account at the
same time), and deposits the shares into the new Foundation account.
The donor can either leave the "transfer to" portion of the form blank and we will fill it
in or the donor may indicate the shares are being transferred to the "Virginia
Commonwealth University Foundation". It is important to use the corporate name for the
Foundation and not to list an individual department or organization. If the donor
would like to indicate a department or organization, that should be done by a separate
letter to the Foundation.
All persons listed on the "transfer form" account need to sign the form. In addition,
all signatures must be medallion guaranteed. This can generally be obtained at a bank
or a brokerage [please note that guarantee of your signature by a notary is not
generally accepted by mutual fund companies].
When the donor has completed his/her portion of the form, it should be mailed to us at the
following address:
Express Mail Only:
Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation
ATTN: Mr. Kevin Davenport
809 West Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23284
U.S. Postal Address:
Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation
ATTN: Mr. Kevin Davenport
P.O. Box 843031
Richmond, VA 23284-3031
Once we receive the form, we will attach a letter requesting that the shares are sold and
the proceeds sent to the Foundation.
If a mutual fund company does not have such a form, the donor should write a letter addressed
to that company authorizing the transfer of shares to the Foundation and have his/her
signature at the bottom of the letter medallion guaranteed. The signed original of that
letter should be sent to us at the above address, so that we can attach a letter
requesting that the account be set up with the new shares and that the new shares are sold
upon transfer. Again, all persons listed on the "transfer from" account need to sign
the letter.
Gifts of mutual fund shares do take time to finalize, so advanced preparation is recommended
when the timing of a gift is critical.
For further information, please contact Mr. Kevin Davenport at (804)828-6533.
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