GSR Foundation: Year in Review 2024
In 2023, GSR formalised its corporate responsibility efforts with a pledge of $10 million to establish the GSR Foundation. The past two years (2023 and 2024) have focused on gathering insights from initial grants, and engaging with partners and stakeholders to shape a collaborative and impactful strategy. Guided by a vision of a world where everyone benefits from technology, the Foundation continues to award grants that advance our mission.
You can read the 2023 review here.
In 2025 we will:
Maintain a proactive approach to finding new potential partners:
We have identified effective pathways for discovering potential partners, and will continue to engage in dialogue with organisations whose work aligns with our objectives.
While our own research and referrals from existing partners remain the most reliable methods, we are open to brief, targeted cold introductions where there is a clear alignment of missions. All such introductions are reviewed; however, we can only respond when there is a strong likelihood of partnership.
Leverage insights from initial grants to refine our mission and identify opportunities where more substantial, multi-year funding can create lasting impact:
Evaluating the effectiveness of an organisation’s work based solely on a written application—particularly for first-time partners—can be challenging. We will continue with our general approach of offering new partners a single-year unrestricted grant as a foundation for building a relationship.
The data and learning from this initial collaboration will guide our decision on whether a multi-year partnership would be mutually beneficial.
Continuing to refine our impact reporting framework, we emphasise the importance of infrastructure support as a catalyst for driving scalable and sustainable outcomes.
Enhance our support for partners by adopting a comprehensive ‘Grants-Plus’ methodology:
Foster synergies among partners by connecting organisations and encouraging meaningful collaboration.
Provide training, guidance, and practical resources, including specialised support related to cryptocurrency.
Organise a partner summit to facilitate networking, share insights, and strengthen partnerships, while further advancing our collaboration platform.
Identify areas where our philanthropic work generates valuable insights and establish a public repository to share this knowledge:
Prioritise grants with a focus on cryptocurrency. Explore its utility, share findings openly, and launch a dedicated programme to examine its potential. Embrace bold experimentation with concepts such as Ethereum staking, using these tests to inform broader strategies.
Anchor our larger grants around cryptocurrency initiatives to drive meaningful innovation in this space.
Transform our website into a dynamic, informative hub that showcases our findings and fosters greater engagement.
Maintain transparency and welcome constructive scrutiny, while advocating for our philanthropic approach:
Actively engage with initiatives such as IVAR’s Open and Trusting framework, ensuring our practices are open to external challenge and validation.
Clearly communicate who we are and how we operate, establishing appropriate boundaries to uphold our integrity and use our time effectively.
