05/10/2026
How Much Should a Charity Actually Hold in Reserves?
Ask a trustee board how much they should hold in reserve and the conversation usually drifts toward a number: three months, six months, a year. It rarely starts with the harder question of what the money is actually for. That gap between having a figure and understanding its purpose is where many charities run into trouble.
As Charles Mesquita, Director of Charities at Quilter Cheviot, who advises charity trustees on reserves policy and investment strategy, explains, reserves ultimately exist to give organisations financial resilience. "We expect charities to live off nothing but deliver phenomenal things," he notes, and without adequate funds set aside, that expectation becomes unsustainable.
Visit the link below to watch the full interview: https://comparewealthmanagers.com/knowledge-centre/charity-investment/free-reserves-designated-funds-endowment-charity-trustees