Financial Titans Tarred by 2008 Crisis Have Kept Up Giving

The former leaders of some financial and mortgage firms that became synonymous with the 2008 financial crash have maintained their philanthropy in the five years since the crisis, and recipients have shown no qualms about accepting the gifts, writes The Wall Street Journal.

The article details recent six- and seven-figure gifts by Angelo Mozilo, former chief of subprime-loan giant Countrywide; Bank of America ex-CEO Kenneth Lewis; and Kerry Killinger, who ran failed Seattle bank Washington Mutual. All three firms were targeted in post-crash legal cases that resulted in tens of millions of dollars in settlement payments.

Recipient groups said they draw a distinction between the executives’ business enterprises and giving by their family foundations, which are not directly linked to the companies.

Plunging donations in the wake of the crash left many nonprofit leaders “hard-pressed for resources,” said Sean Dobson of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, which has done research on post-crisis giving. “It’s pretty hard to turn down money.”