Government Funding vs Reserves Growth

Are charities receiving government funding also accumulating reserves? This analysis compares the growth rate of government grants against reserve accumulation to identify patterns in fund deployment.

Key Finding (2007-2008)

Reserves grew at 2161.3% annually while government funding grew at 1340.7%. This 820.5 percentage point gap suggests some government-funded charities may be accumulating reserves rather than spending on programs.

Avg Govt Growth
+1340.7%
per year
Avg Reserves Growth
+2161.3%
per year
Growth Gap
+820.5pp
reserves vs govt
Reserve Accumulators
17
of 45 charities

Government Funding vs Total Reserves Over Time

Bars show total government grants distributed. Line shows combined net assets (reserves) of all charities receiving government funding.

Year-over-Year Growth Rates

How to Interpret

  • Healthy: Reserves growth roughly tracks government funding growth (within 5 percentage points)
  • Concerning: Reserves growing significantly faster than government funding suggests charities may be accumulating reserves rather than deploying funds to programs
  • Reserve Accumulators: Individual charities where reserves grew 10+ percentage points faster than their government funding

Data sourced from Charities Services register and annual returns. Our datasets may not be complete. Automated analysis can produce errors. If you believe any data on this page is incorrect, please contact us at hello@nzxplorer.co.nz.

For informational purposes only. Not investment advice.