Wadhwani Charitable Foundation
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation is a private foundation based in Los Altos, California. Its 2024 filing reports 13 grants totaling $6,307,719, with the largest awards going to organizations in California and Washington, DC.
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation at a glance
In short: Wadhwani Charitable Foundation gave $6.3M across 13 grants in 2024 (avg $485K), mostly in California. 54% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $6,307,719
- +75.1% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 13
- +30.0% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $485,209
- +34.7% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $150,001
- Total assets
- $155,250,222
- +14.1% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 54% first-time grantees (7 of 13, 2024; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (79% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Wadhwani Charitable Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: PO Box 1987, Los Altos, CA 94023
Phone: (650) 946-2505
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Wadhwani Charitable Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was San Francisco Foundation ($3.7M). Together the top 10 received $6.2M.
Grant Size Distribution
66 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 28 grants of 66 (42%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2024, 79% of grant dollars went to recipients in California and 16% to recipients in Washington, DC. Texas received 2% of grant dollars. The filing also reports 0% for New York.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 13 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Wadhwani Charitable Foundation open to new grantees?
54%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 7 of 13 grantees (54%) were first-time recipients. With only 13 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $118K; repeat grants $914K. How we count
Medians: $150K first-time, $366K repeat.
- 38% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2021 to 2024 (−7%). Method
- In 2024 it paid out 95% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $2.6M (2020) to $6.8M (2021). In 2024 it made 13 grants totaling $6.3M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Foundation San Francisco, CA | General Public Support | $3,700,000 |
| Center for Strategic & International Studies Washington, DC | General Public Support | $1,000,000 |
| IIT Bombay Cupertino, CA | General Public Support | $600,000 |
| Center for Cellular and Molecular Platform | General Public Support | $150,001 |
| Iisc Foundation Allen, TX | General Public Support | $150,001 |
| IIT Delhi Fremont, CA | General Public Support | $150,001 |
| IIT Hyderabad Foundation Fremont, CA | General Public Support | $150,001 |
| Indian Institute of Technology Madra Cupertino, CA | General Public Support | $150,001 |
| Foundation for Excellence Sunnyvale, CA | General Public Support | $132,713 |
| Saloni Heart Foundation San Jose, CA | General Public Support | $50,001 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $155,250,222 | $9,191,849 | $8,215,087 | $6,307,719 | 13 | $6,819,024 | $11,159,844 | $7,178,778 |
| 2023 | $136,031,626 | $3,890,644 | $3,786,234 | $3,602,138 | 10 | $4,109,571 | $4,342,823 | $6,806,966 |
| 2022 | $137,425,055 | $-12,839,518 | $7,381,239 | $6,225,000 | 6 | $6,834,490 | $2,111,394 | $7,033,653 |
| 2021 | $157,667,028 | $40,374,553 | $7,604,553 | $6,781,000 | 19 | $7,398,236 | $28,684,439 | $6,568,884 |
| 2020 | $122,548,420 | $27,165,516 | $2,942,047 | $2,559,764 | 18 | — | $6,291,291 | $4,708,491 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Wadhwani Charitable Foundation reported a distributable amount of $7.2M for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants included general public support for foundations, educational and research institutions, and other organizations. Among those recipients, IISc Foundation describes its mission as securing funding for education, research, technology development, startup incubation, acceleration, and translational research at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. Foundation for Excellence describes its mission as providing financial assistance to financially needy students in India so they can continue and complete higher professional education. Saloni Heart Foundation says it works to improve access to medical resources and information, including through a heart-care center in India. Indiaspora describes its mission as transforming the success of the Indian diaspora into meaningful impact worldwide.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation reported 13 grants totaling $6,307,719. Grants ranged from $25,000 to $3,700,000, with a median of $150,001. The largest reported grants were $3,700,000 to San Francisco Foundation and $1,000,000 to the Center for Strategic & International Studies, both for general public support. Other notable awards included $600,000 to IIT Bombay and $150,001 each to the Center for Cellular and Molecular Platform, IISc Foundation, IIT Delhi, IIT Hyderabad Foundation, and Indian Institute of Technology Madras, all for general public support.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Romesh T Wadhwani as CEO and Kathleen E Wadhwani as Secretary/CFO.
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation is led by Romesh T. Wadhwani, CEO on every filing since 2020; none of the 2 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Romesh T. Wadhwani
CEO
On filings since 2020
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kathleen E. Wadhwani
Secretary & CFO
On filings since 2020
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Frequently asked questions about Wadhwani Charitable Foundation
How much does Wadhwani Charitable Foundation give each year?
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation gave $6.3M across 13 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $3.6M across 10 grants.
What is Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's typical grant size?
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $150,001, and its average grant was $485,209, across 13 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Wadhwani Charitable Foundation that year got $118K on average.
Where does Wadhwani Charitable Foundation give grants?
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation gives mostly in California: 79% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was District of Columbia (16%). The most frequent recipient cities were San Francisco, CA (2 grants), Cupertino, CA (2 grants) and Fremont, CA (2 grants).
Does Wadhwani Charitable Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (13 of 13) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's largest grantees?
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include San Francisco Foundation ($3,700,000), Center for Strategic & International Studies ($1,000,000) and IIT Bombay ($600,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 84% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Wadhwani Charitable Foundation?
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation reported $155.3M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $6.8M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $7.2M (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does Wadhwani Charitable Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants included general public support for foundations, educational and research institutions, and other organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Wadhwani Charitable Foundation?
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's EIN?
Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 77-0450893. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Does Wadhwani Charitable Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Wadhwani Charitable Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/wadhwani-charitable-foundation-morg_2d323a95af5340aa85910140aa9af551
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_770450893_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Wadhwani Charitable Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/wadhwani-charitable-foundation-morg_2d323a95af5340aa85910140aa9af551},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-14. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Wadhwani Charitable Foundation's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
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