After selling his company for a significant sum, Rehan Azhar faced a question many newly wealthy individuals confront: how to give back effectively. His answer challenges conventional approaches to philanthropy, emphasizing sustainable models and physical infrastructure over traditional charitable giving.
The Donor-Advised Fund: A Strategic Starting Point
Following CRC’s sale to York Private Equity, Rehan Azhar established a donor-advised fund (DAF) with approximately $7 million. This financial vehicle allows donors to receive immediate tax benefits while distributing funds to charities over time, creating a structure for sustained giving rather than one-time donations.
“I’ve always been someone that’s wanted to give back to my community,” Azhar explained. “I grew up with pretty humble beginnings, never had any significant means, but even still, I gave the amounts I could along my career.”
The DAF structure gave him time to develop a sophisticated giving strategy rather than rushing into reactive donations. His goal: spend down the fund over 20 years, distributing $1-1.5 million annually. Currently, the fund has decreased to roughly $4 million after two years of active giving, demonstrating his commitment to deployment rather than accumulation.
The First Year: Learning by Doing
Azhar’s first year of major philanthropy revealed how unprepared most new donors are for the responsibility of deploying significant capital. “I didn’t know what I was doing, so I kind of peanut butter spread across a hundred grand across a dozen or so organizations that I was familiar with,” he recalled.
The strategy felt scattered and ineffective. Was $100,000 too much for some organizations to handle effectively? Too little to make a real difference? Without deep relationships with these nonprofits, Azhar couldn’t answer these questions confidently.
This experimental first year taught him that effective philanthropy requires the same strategic thinking as business. You need to understand organizational capacity, track outcomes, and focus resources where they can achieve the greatest impact.
The Evolution: Fewer, Larger, More Strategic Gifts
According to Rehan Azhar’s detailed discussions, he quickly evolved toward giving fewer but larger checks to organizations he could really support. This allowed him to:
- Get more involved in how funds were used
- Support specific expansion projects rather than just general operations
- Build deeper relationships with nonprofit leaders
- Track impact more effectively
One organization doing orphanages, schools, hospitals, and teaching facilities in Pakistan stood out for its communication and impact reporting. Rather than only reaching out when they needed money, they proactively shared updates and outcomes. Azhar doubled down on his support for them.
Similarly, a domestic violence women’s shelter in New York earned his sustained commitment. When they needed to purchase their own facility instead of renting, Azhar provided the down payment and committed to funding the remainder of the project once they identified a property.
The Real Estate Philosophy: Building Perpetual Value
A recurring theme in Azhar’s philanthropic strategy is emphasis on real estate and physical infrastructure. As he explained in interviews, “I really just liked the idea of the money going to build a physical space and real estate because that’s kind of there indefinitely.”
This approach contrasts with funding salaries or programs, where the impact depends entirely on continued execution by specific individuals. Buildings remain. A community center, shelter, or school creates ongoing value regardless of personnel changes.
A Muslim community center in downtown Manhattan received substantial support from Azhar for exactly this reason. The physical space would serve the community indefinitely, creating compound value over decades.
The Third Space Concept: Innovation in Community Building
Azhar’s most innovative philanthropic idea hasn’t been executed yet, but it represents his thinking about sustainable nonprofit models. He envisions creating “third spaces”—a hybrid of Soho House and WeWork for different minority communities.
The concept: a nonprofit members lounge that charges fees sufficient to cover operations while serving as a community gathering place. The initial capital investment might be $200,000-$300,000 to build and design the space and hire staff. But unlike traditional nonprofits that require perpetual funding, this model would aim to break even annually.
“If that model really works out, then you could expand these nationally,” Azhar explained. The approach addresses a common challenge in philanthropy: how to create sustainable impact without requiring endless fundraising.
The ROI Framework: Applying Business Thinking to Giving
Azhar’s business background shapes how he evaluates philanthropic opportunities. He explicitly discusses “ROI” when considering where to donate, asking whether money will enable sustainable change or create dependency.
For the school in Pakistan, AI-powered skills training was key. Students weren’t just receiving food or shelter—they were learning computer science and practical skills that could transform their economic prospects.
At the domestic violence shelter, Azhar advocated for skills training so residents could secure jobs and eventually live independently. “There should be a timeline where they’re coached and they can prepped to move out and live on their own as opposed to just being a home indefinitely,” he argued.
This “teach them to fish” philosophy sometimes sounds harsh, but it reflects genuine concern about creating dependency versus empowerment. Azhar wants his donations to multiply their impact by enabling recipients to eventually thrive without continued support.
Faith and Giving: The Islamic Framework
As a Muslim, Rehan Azhar operates within an Islamic framework that emphasizes charity as both religious obligation and spiritual practice. “Give with one hand where you don’t actually know how much you’re giving,” he explained, referencing a principle that encourages generous, spontaneous giving rather than calculated minimums.
He also discussed the concept that giving should be somewhat painful—that true charity requires sacrifice proportionate to one’s means. A million dollars from someone worth $100 million isn’t particularly sacrificial, while $100 from someone making minimum wage represents real commitment.
This framework pushes Azhar to give more than comfortable, to structure his philanthropy in ways that require genuine commitment and ongoing engagement rather than passive check-writing.
Personal Connection: The Pakistan Focus
Azhar’s Pakistani heritage influences his giving priorities. Supporting schools, orphanages, and healthcare facilities in Pakistan allows him to connect with his cultural roots while addressing needs in a region that lacks the safety net available in the United States.
This personal connection ensures emotional investment in outcomes, not just financial investment. When you’re supporting your own community, accountability feels different—it’s not about donor reporting requirements but about genuine responsibility to people you consider family in the broadest sense.
The Measurement Challenge
One of the hardest aspects of philanthropy is measuring impact. Unlike business, where revenue and profit provide clear metrics, charitable effectiveness is notoriously difficult to quantify. Azhar addresses this partly through his emphasis on physical infrastructure—a building exists or it doesn’t, serves people or it doesn’t.
But for programs focused on skills development or personal transformation, measurement becomes more subjective. Organizations that communicate effectively and share specific outcome stories earn Azhar’s continued support, while those that simply ask for more money without demonstrating impact risk losing his engagement.
Looking Forward: Political Giving as Philanthropy
Azhar’s recent venture into political giving—raising $550,000 for Zohran Mamdani’s campaign—represents another evolution in his thinking about creating change. Political campaigns aren’t traditionally considered philanthropy, but they aim to improve communities through systemic change rather than individual services.
His willingness to engage politically demonstrates that his philanthropic framework isn’t rigid. Whether supporting a shelter, funding a political campaign, or building a community center, the question remains: will this investment create sustainable, multiplying value for the community?
The answer to that question, rather than tax benefits or recognition, drives where Rehan Azhar directs his giving.
