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← DEFI EDUCATION FUND

Form 990 for tax year 2024

Filed by DEFI EDUCATION FUND.

Totals

Total revenue
$6,940,589
Total expenses
$3,609,448
Contributions and grants received
$10,429,765
Grants paid
$216,250
Program service revenue
$0
Investment income
-$3,489,657
Other revenue
$481
Total assets, end of year
$18,450,662
Total liabilities, end of year
$303,871
Net assets or fund balances, end of year
$18,146,791
Program services expenses (Part IX)
$2,614,247
Management and general expenses
$715,476
Fundraising expenses
$279,725
Program service expenses (Part III)
$2,614,247

Program services were 72.4% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Revenue

Part VIII, the statement of revenue.

  • 1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants

    $10,429,765

  • 1g · Noncash contributions included above

    $10,329,084

  • 3 · Investment income

    total $208 · excluded $208

  • 7a · Gross sales of assets other than inventory

    securities $2,843,454

  • 7b · Less cost or other basis and sales expenses

    securities $6,333,319

  • 7c · Gain or loss

    securities -$3,489,865

  • 7d · Net gain or loss

    total -$3,489,865 · excluded -$3,489,865

  • 11a · Other revenue: Other Income

    total $481 · excluded $481

  • 11e · Other revenue, total

    $481

Functional expenses

Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.

  • 1 · Grants to domestic organizations and governments

    total $216,250 · program services $216,250

  • 5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees

    total $845,418 · program services $676,988 · management and general $60,768 · fundraising $107,662

  • 7 · Other salaries and wages

    total $697,207 · program services $558,305 · management and general $50,115 · fundraising $88,787

  • 9 · Other employee benefits

    total $37,309 · management and general $37,309

  • 10 · Payroll taxes

    total $102,383 · program services $82,383 · management and general $9,455 · fundraising $10,545

  • 11b · Fees: legal

    total $28,514 · program services $11,425 · management and general $17,089

  • 11c · Fees: accounting

    total $83,174 · management and general $83,174

  • 11d · Fees: lobbying

    total $480,433 · program services $480,433

  • 11e · Fees: professional fundraising services

    total $59,481 · fundraising $59,481

  • 11g · Fees: other

    total $69,731 · management and general $69,731

  • 12 · Advertising and promotion

    total $115,737 · program services $99,833 · management and general $15,904

  • 13 · Office expenses

    total $11,451 · management and general $11,451

  • 14 · Information technology

    total $60,493 · management and general $47,243 · fundraising $13,250

  • 16 · Occupancy

    total $65,739 · management and general $65,739

  • 17 · Travel

    total $128,948 · management and general $128,948

  • 23 · Insurance

    total $59,950 · management and general $59,950

  • 24a · Other expenses: Policy litigation

    total $517,387 · program services $488,630 · management and general $28,757

  • 24b · Other expenses: Trading and transaction

    total $25,662 · management and general $25,662

  • 24c · Other expenses: Bank & merchant fees

    total $2,585 · management and general $2,585

  • 24d · Other expenses: Taxes & licenses

    total $1,596 · management and general $1,596

Balance sheet

Part X, book values.

  • 1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing

    beginning of year $274,804 · end of year $481,251

  • 3 · Pledges and grants receivable

    end of year $2,756,250

  • 9 · Prepaid expenses and deferred charges

    beginning of year $47,492 · end of year $21,300

  • 15 · Other assets

    beginning of year $6,094,951 · end of year $15,191,861

  • 17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses

    beginning of year $332,256 · end of year $303,871

  • 27 · Net assets without donor restrictions

    beginning of year $6,084,991 · end of year $18,146,791

Mission and programs · 2024

Mission

DeFi Education Fund is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization committed to advocating for sound DeFi policy. At DEF, we are working to build a mainstream understanding of decentralized finance, and protect the rights of developers, users, and projects to freely create decentralized infrastructure and technology.

Activities or mission (Part I)

See Part III, Line 1.

  • Policy Litigation: Comprehensive policy work including legal actions, research, and analysis aimed at shaping the regulatory environment for DeFi. Encompasses defending DeFi protocols through litigation, filing amicus briefs, developing substantive research and white papers, producting regulatory analysis and comment letters, and providing legal supoprt in cases with significant implications to DeFi's regulatory treatment.

    Expenses $1,061,973

  • Lobbying Activities:Direct advocacy with legislators and regulators to advance policy positions that promote innovation and freedom to build DeFi technology.

    Expenses $598,714

  • Public Relations:External communication and community engagement activities that educate members of the public about how DeFi technology works and raise awareness about DeFi policy issues.

    Expenses $245,582

  • Grants to other organizations

    Expenses $216,250 · Grants $216,250

  • Policy meetings / policy research / other programs.

    Expenses $491,728

As filed on the 2024 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

  • Marc Boiron

    Director, President

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    3

  • Rebecca Rettig

    Director

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    3

  • Jake Chervinsky

    Director

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Amanda Tuminelli

    CLO, Secretary

    Total calculated
    $537,017
    From this org
    $514,423
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $22,594
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $451,090
    Bonus
    $63,333
    Other
    $0
    Deferred
    $13,600
    Nontaxable benefits
    $8,994
    Filer's total
    $537,017

  • Miller Whitehouse-Levine

    CEO

    Total calculated
    $396,289
    From this org
    $367,595
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $28,694
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $323,595
    Bonus
    $44,000
    Other
    $0
    Deferred
    $23,000
    Nontaxable benefits
    $5,694
    Filer's total
    $396,289

  • Larry Sukernik

    Director

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    2

  • Lizandro Pieper

    Research Director

    Total calculated
    $130,727
    From this org
    $119,767
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $10,960
    Hours/week
    40

  • Max Bernstein

    Communications & Operation

    Total calculated
    $196,926
    From this org
    $174,452
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $22,474
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $158,952
    Bonus
    $15,500
    Other
    $0
    Deferred
    $7,846
    Nontaxable benefits
    $14,628
    Filer's total
    $196,926

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Answered yes

  • 3 · Form 990 of other organizations
  • 3 · Compensation survey or study
  • 3 · Approval by the board or compensation committee

Answered no

  • 4a · Severance or change-of-control payment
  • 4b · Supplemental nonqualified retirement plan
  • 4c · Equity-based compensation arrangement
  • 5a · Pay contingent on this organization's revenues
  • 5b · Pay contingent on a related organization's revenues
  • 6a · Pay contingent on this organization's net earnings
  • 6b · Pay contingent on a related organization's net earnings
  • 7 · Other non-fixed payments
  • 8 · Paid under the initial-contract exception

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

Provenance

Return type
form_990
Tax year
2024
Filed
30 October 2025
IRS schema version
2024v5.2
Source object
202543099349301974

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