Canadian Bible Society

10 Carnforth Rd
Toronto, ON M4A 2S4
Executive Director: Rev. Dr. Rupen Das
Board Chair: Brian Evans

Charitable Reg. #:11882 9647 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 3/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

B+

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

72%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 72 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About Canadian Bible Society:

Canadian Bible Society is a 3-star charity, with an above average results reporting grade and reasonable overhead costs. It is financially transparent. With its current reserves, the charity can cover slightly under four years of annual program costs. 

Founded in 1904, Canadian Bible Society (CBS) works to translate, publish, and distribute Christian scriptures in Canada and globally. It is one of 150 national societies that make up United Bible Societies in more than 240 countries. CBS reports that Bible Societies have translated the Bible into 70% of the world’s languages. Yet, there are still 1.5 billion people who do not have access to the full Bible in their own language.

In F2023, CBS spent 76% of program costs on Canadian ministries. In F2023, The charity distributed 525,466 Bibles, Testaments and Scripture selections in Canada in F2023. The charity made the Bible available in Canada in 75 languages besides English and French. In F2023, the top languages distributed were Arabic, Chinese, Haitian, Creole, Eastern Arctic Inuktitut, Persian, Plautdietsch, Spanish, and Ukrainian. The charity completed Mohawk translation of the Bible, which will be published in September 2023. It also published the Inupiaq Pentateuch & Psalms. In 2020 CBS started a pilot program to help elderly individuals in long-term care home access the Bible and other Scriptures. Through this program, the charity distributed Audio Scriptures and large-print Scriptural resources. In F2023, Audio Scriptures went from being offered in two languages to being offered in more than 50.

In F2023 CBS spent the remaining 24% of program costs on international ministries. CBS supported 46 projects in 35 countries. Working with United Bible Societies (UBS), CBS supported programs in many countries including Ukraine, China, Cuba, Guatemala, Ghana, and Kenya. Following the invasion of Ukraine, CBS and UBS helped print and distribute 718,973 copies of Bibles, Gospels, and other Scripture publications to refugees in Ukraine and other countries. In F2023, CBS and UBS helped to provide paper to print 1.7 million Bibles in China and delivered over 70,000 Bibles for free.

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Results and Impact

By providing literacy classes, audio Bibles, and large-print Bibles, Canadian Bible Society works to make God’s Word accessible to more people. One church claims that attendance increased to 120 members from six in 2015 before the programs began.

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Canadian Bible Society's results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r).

 

 
 

 

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Finances

Canadian Bible Society had $10.7m in donations in F2023. Administrative costs are 18% of revenues (excluding investment income) and fundraising costs are 10% of donations. This results in a total overhead spending of 28%. For every dollar donated, 72 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

CBS has $38.0m in total reserve funds, of which $1.1m is donor-endowed. Reserve funds are the charity’s cash and investments. Excluding endowed funds, CBS can cover three years and 11 months of annual program costs with current reserves.

In F2023, CBS paid external fundraisers $428k to collect $4.5m from donors, at a cost of 10 cents per dollar raised.

This charity profile is an update that has been sent to Canadian Bible Society for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on July 12, 2023 by Alessandra Castino.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending February
202320222021
Administrative costs as % of revenues 17.6%16.0%17.2%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 10.2%12.2%14.2%
Total overhead spending 27.8%28.2%31.4%
Program cost coverage (%) 391.0%463.4%446.9%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s
202320222021
Donations 10,65210,3059,726
Government funding 04481,398
Fees for service 1,9021,6551,332
Business activities (net) 891017
Investment income 1,324916749
Total revenues 13,96713,33413,222
Program costs - International 2,2522,1871,874
Program costs - Canada 7,2416,0645,582
Administrative costs 2,2221,9852,146
Fundraising costs 1,0881,2561,380
Total spending 12,80311,49210,982
Cash flow from operations 1,1641,8422,240
Capital spending 39144200
Funding reserves 38,04039,12134,212

Note: Revenues for Bible sales are included as fees for service, and expenses for Bible sales are included as a program cost. Ci adjusted for deferred donations, affecting total revenues by $176k in F2023, ($15k) in F2022, and ($5k) in F2021.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 58

Avg. compensation: $70,827

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
0
$160k - $200k
0
$120k - $160k
3
$80k - $120k
7
$40k - $80k
0
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2023

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

Charity Contact

Website: www.biblesociety.ca
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 1-800-465-2425

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