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Set Up Funds and Designations

Goal: Define the funds your affiliate uses to track restricted and unrestricted giving so every gift can be designated correctly and reporting matches your accounting.

What a fund is​

A fund is a bucket your accounting recognizes — for example:

  • General Operating (unrestricted)
  • Build Fund (restricted to construction)
  • ReStore (restricted to retail operations)
  • Capital Campaign 2026 (temporarily restricted)
  • Endowment (permanently restricted)

Funds drive the journal entries that hit your general ledger when a gift is recorded. They also drive reporting — donors and board members alike want to know "how much went to construction this year" with accuracy, and that answer comes from fund designation.

Configure your fund list​

Funds are managed under Administration -> Accounting → Fund Management. Build the list to mirror what your finance team uses on Form 990 and your audited financials:

  • Use the same fund names across systems so reconciliation is straightforward
  • Include retired funds in the list (don't delete) so historical reports remain readable

Default funds​

Most gifts that arrive without an explicit designation should land in your default unrestricted fund. Mark exactly one fund as the affiliate default by toggling Default fund on the fund record — only one fund per affiliate can hold this flag.

When a donation is recorded without an explicit fund, Ayuna resolves the fund in this order:

  1. The campaign's default fund (if the gift is linked to a campaign)
  2. The project's default fund (if linked to a project)
  3. The fundraising event's default fund (if linked to an event)
  4. The affiliate's default fund (the one you flagged above)

Campaign, project, and event defaults are set on those records, not on the fund record. Use them to route, for example, all Holiday Match gifts to the Build Fund without changing your affiliate-level default.

When to create a new fund vs. a campaign​

These often get confused. Use the simpler rule:

  • Fund — accounting category. Persists year over year. New ones are rare.
  • Campaign — time-bound fundraising appeal. New ones are common (Annual Appeal 2026, Holiday Match, Spring Build Day Sponsors).

A campaign rolls up to a fund. The Holiday Match campaign might designate gifts to the Build Fund.

Linking gifts to funds​

Funds are referenced from:

  • Donations (one fund per gift, defaulted from campaign)
  • Recurring donation schedules
  • Pledge payments
  • Sponsorship commitments

When you record any of these, choose the fund explicitly if it differs from the default.

Maintenance​

It is recommended to review this configuration once a year and confirm:

  • Active funds match the chart of accounts
  • Retired funds are flagged inactive (so they don't appear on new gifts)
  • Fund balances reconcile against the GL