Multiply Your Gift to Charity Using a Cash Balance Plan
Turn Tax Deductions Into a Lasting Legacy of Giving
At Oakwood Summit, we help business donors multiply their charitable giving by combining the tax advantages of a Cash Balance Plan with the wealth-leveraging power of life insurance funded with pre-tax dollars.
This approach allows you to:
Reduce your current taxes
Increase your lifetime giving capacity
Pass on significantly greater wealth to the charities you care about most
All while maintaining full compliance under IRS-qualified retirement plan rules.
The Challenge: Giving After Taxes Shrinks Your Impact
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Most charitable gifts are made with after-tax dollars, income that has already been reduced by federal, state, and sometimes local taxes.
For high-income professionals, this means nearly 40 cents of every dollar can be lost to taxes before a donation ever reaches your charitable cause.
That means:
Your giving power is reduced
Your business misses out on potential deductions
Your legacy gift is smaller than it could be
There’s a smarter, more tax-efficient way to give.
The Strategy: Fund Your Gift With Pre-Tax Dollars​
By establishing a Cash Balance Plan through your business, you can make large, tax-deductible contributions, often hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, that are fully compliant as qualified retirement contributions.
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A portion of these plan assets can then be used to purchase life insurance inside the plan.
Here’s how it works:
Why This Strategy Work
Immediate Tax Deduction
Leverage the Power of Life Insurance
Maximize Your Charitable Impact
Control and Flexibility
Your business receives a full tax deduction for contributions made to the Cash Balance Plan, lowering taxable income for the year
Life insurance purchased inside the plan transforms each dollar of pre-tax contribution into multiple dollars of tax-free charitable benefit
Instead of giving with after-tax dollars, you’re giving with pre-tax dollars that grow tax-deferred inside the plan
You choose how the life insurance and plan are structured—whether the charity receives the entire benefit, or a portion alongside your heirs
Build a Legacy of Generosity
This strategy turns tax savings into a lasting impact—helping you support the causes you believe in long after your lifetime
Example: Turning Tax Deductions Into Lasting Giving
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A business owner contributes $300,000 per year to a Cash Balance Plan.
Within the plan, a portion is used to fund a life insurance policy with a $2 million death benefit.
The $300,000 contribution is fully tax-deductible to the business.
The policy is funded with pre-tax dollars, not after-tax income.
Upon the owner’s passing, the $2 million death benefit is paid tax-free to a designated charity.
The result:
$300,000 annual tax deduction
$2 million legacy gift to charity
No after-tax dollars required
The Ultimate Win-Win: Lower Taxes, Higher Impact
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With this approach, you’re not choosing between personal wealth, retirement security, or philanthropy. You’re aligning all three.
You’ll:
Lower your taxes today
Build guaranteed retirement benefits for yourself and your spouse
Create a lasting charitable legacy that lives on through your giving​
Make Every Dollar Count For You and Your Charity
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By combining a Cash Balance Plan with charitable gifting, you can reduce taxes, secure your retirement, and leave a legacy that lasts generations.
Discover how to use pre-tax business dollars to multiply your gift to charity and make the greatest possible impact.