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Harvard Breaking Higher Ed Fundraising Record

by Marcelino Pantoja

"All but the first fiscal year of the capital campaign saw annual fundraising totals in excess of $1 billion. Last...

CNBC clip

by Ted Seides

Ted appeared on CNBC to discuss off-the-run investment opportunities.  

UTIMCO CIO Britt Harris First Year at Endowment

by Marcelino Pantoja

“‘I’d heard that endowments were in general strong performers, but they are even stronger than I had anticipated,’ Harris admits....

College Giving in 2018 Up 7.2%

by Marcelino Pantoja

"The S&P 500 Index’s 14 percent return in the period may have helped encourage giving from a variety of donors....

Columbia Building Manhattanville Campus

by Marcelino Pantoja

"Today, the heart of industrial Manhattanville, which is sandwiched between Broadway and 12th Avenue at the end of West 125th...

Chris Ailman – CalSTRS’ Venerable CIO (EP.86)

by Ted Seides

Chris Ailman is the chief investment officer of the $220 billion pool for California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS). He...

The Price That Makes Hedge Funds a Steal

by Ted Seides

This article originally appeared here in Institutional Investor on January 31, 2019 Hedge funds are expensive. Would you buy them...

Johns Hopkins $1.8 Billion Bloomberg Gift

by Marcelino Pantoja

"I have always been grateful for that opportunity. I gave my first donation to Hopkins the year after I graduated:...

Texas Endowment Billion Dollar Royalties

by Marcelino Pantoja

“Mineral rights are also seen as a relatively low-risk way to get exposure to energy and generate income compared with...

Hewlett Foundation CIO on Fund Managers

by Marcelino Pantoja

"We've got a fairly mature portfolio. This means we don't have a lot of new managers in and out of...

Capital Allocators Monthly – January 2019

by Ted Seides

As always, please feel free to forward this email to friends. Here Ye, Here Ye We crossed ONE MILLION downloads...

What Happened When I Met Jack Bogle

by Ted Seides

This article originally appeared here in Institutional Investor on January 31, 2019 The Vanguard founder espoused low-cost index investing. I...

Harvard CIO Narv Narvekar on Endowment Changes

by Marcelino Pantoja

"In a refinement, or perhaps a restatement, of his description of the duration of that transition, [CEO] Narvekar wrote that...

Steve Kuhn – Life After Hedge Funds (EP.85)

by Ted Seides

Steve Kuhn is a retired hedge fund manager.  He spent two decades in the industry, specializing in mortgage-backed securities at...

Ivy League Endowments 2018 Performance Analysis

by Marcelino Pantoja

"Fiscal year 2018 was a stronger year for Ivy endowment performance than fiscal year 2017. Traditional outperformers continued to outperform,...

Harvard Vineyards Thirst for Water in California

by Marcelino Pantoja

"The county supervisors issued an emergency moratorium on new agricultural wells starting Aug. 27, 2013—not just wells in the affected...

Amherst CIO Mauricia Geissler on Fund Managers

by Marcelino Pantoja

"Moving to a broader asset allocation structure/model is probably one of the most significant shifts over the last 15 years....

Stanford CIO Rob Wallace on Endowment Purpose

by Marcelino Pantoja

"The endowment is actually a collection of more than 7,000 individual gifts from donors. These generous gifts are meant to...

Donna Snider – Inside the Investment Process at the Kresge Foundation (EP.84)

by Ted Seides

 Donna Snider is a Managing Director at the $4 billion Kresge Foundation, where she has worked for ten years...

Pittsburgh Foundation on PE Funds

by Marcelino Pantoja

"We look for consistency of fund size, the experience of the team and consistency regarding how they approach their investment...

Founding a University

by Marcelino Pantoja

"When railroad magnate and former California Gov. Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane Lathrop Stanford, lost their only child, Leland,...

Princeton CIO Andy Golden on Investment Returns

by Marcelino Pantoja

“Princeton aims for a 10 percent annualized return, which is close to the long-term return for the S&P 500, not...

Higher Ed Hustle

by Marcelino Pantoja

"Another source of strength was that this disparate collection of largely undistinguished colleges and universities had succeeded in surviving a...

Ron Biscardi – Putting Hedge Funds in Context (EP.83)

by Ted Seides

Ron Biscardi, the Co-Founder and CEO of Context Capital Partners and a Partner and Board Member of Context Summits.  Ron sits...

Notre Dame CIO Scott Malpass Humble Beginnings

by Marcelino Pantoja

"The story goes that [Scott Malpass] came back to campus with $20 in his pocket and needing a job and...

New Study on Endowments Large and Small

by Marcelino Pantoja

"The study was based on the IRS filings of 28,696 endowments and foundations. In addition to comparing university endowments to...

Harvard Monetizing Campus Real Estate

by Marcelino Pantoja

“Fourthly, in strictly monetary terms, the University is holding land it values at $969 million in its most recent financial...

UTIMCO CIO Britt Harris on Endowment Strategy

by Marcelino Pantoja

"Our strategy for being among the best endowments is to: - Have a clearly defined culture that is extreme. -...

Jean Hynes – Inside Wellington Management (EP.82)

by Ted Seides

 Jean Hynes is a Managing Partner at Wellington Management, where she one of three people responsible for the governance...

Yale CIO David Swensen on Fund Managers

by Marcelino Pantoja

"We want people who are maniacally focused on beating the markets, generating superior investment returns. That’s an incredibly important distinction...

University Endowments

by Marcelino Pantoja

I am thrilled to share with you here on the Capital Allocators blog interesting articles and publications on University endowments....

Jennifer Prosek – Branding an Asset Management Firm (EP.81)

by Ted Seides

 Jennifer Prosek is the founder and CEO of Prosek Partners, a leading international public relations and financial communications consultancy...

Capital Allocators Monthly – December 2018

by Ted Seides

  Every year we turn over the calendar and start fresh.  Some years it feels daunting.  This time, maybe not...

The Top 10 Episodes of 2018

by Ted Seides

   Thanks to you, this little pet project interviewing great leaders in the investment industry will cross one million...

Tim McCusker – Consistency and Creativity at NEPC (EP.80)

by Ted Seides

 Tim McCusker is the Chief Investment Officer at NEPC, an investment consultant that advises on $1 trillion in assets...

Brent Beshore – Micro Buyout Adventur.es (EP.79)

by Ted Seides

 Brent Beshore is the founder and CEO of Adventur.es, an investment firm that buys small family-owned businesses with the...

Tom Bushey – Launching a Hedge Fund (EP.78)

by Ted Seides

 Tom Bushey is the founder of Sunderland Capital, a Boston-based hedge fund he started in 2016.  Tom graduated from...

Capital Allocators Monthly – November 2018

by Ted Seides

  Please feel free to forward this email to friends and colleagues. Readings are few in quantity, very high in...

Mark Baumgartner – Luck, Risk and Uncertainty at the Institute for Advanced Study (EP.77)

by Ted Seides

 Mark Baumgartner is the CIO of the Institute for Advanced Study, where he oversees a $1 billion portfolio that...

Annie Duke – Thinking More in Bets (EP.76)

by Ted Seides

 Annie Duke is a decision-making expert, former world-famous poker player, and author of the best seller, Thinking in Bets. ...

Michael Lombardi – Leadership Through Football (EP.75)

by Ted Seides

 Michael Lombardi is a thirty-year veteran of professional football, including as a General Manager and a three-time Super Bowl...

Jeffrey Solomon – Grief and Goodness in Squirrel Hill (SPECIAL EPISODE)

by Ted Seides

 Last week, the senseless and tragic events at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh left me and many...

Capital Allocators Monthly – October 2018

by Ted Seides

  I've been on the speaking circuit of late.  Great to catch up with lots of investors and allocators and...

Karl Scheer – Competing Sensibly as CIO of the University of Cincinnati (EP.74)

by Ted Seides

 Karl Scheer is the Chief Investment Officer of the University of Cincinnati’s billion-dollar endowment.  Before taking the helm at...

Andrew Tsai – Catching a Theme on the Chalkstream (EP.73)

by Ted Seides

 Andrew Tsai is the Chief Investment Officer of Chalkstream Capital Group, which he founded in 2003 to manage the...

Michael Schwimer – Moneyball as an Investment Strategy (EP.72)

by Ted Seides

 Michael Schwimer is the CEO of Big League Advance, a company that makes investments in Minor League baseball players...

Origins of an Investing Podcast

by Ted Seides

  Published on Medium on October 14, 2018 Did you find the podcast, or did the podcast find you? On a...

Michael Batnick – The Best Investors and Their Biggest Mistakes (EP.71)

by Ted Seides

 Michael Batnick is the Director of Research at Ritholz Wealth Management, author of the Irrelevant Investor blog, co-host of...

What Billy Beane and Jim Simons Have in Common

by Ted Seides

  Published in Institutional Investor on September 28, 2018 Major League Baseball’s playoffs are approaching, and I’m left with a...

Andrew Golden – Princeton University’s Chief Investing Tiger (EP.13)

by Ted Seides

 Andy Golden is the President of Princeton University’s Investment Management Company (or PRINCO) for the last 22 years.  Having...

Capital Allocators Monthly – September 2018

by Ted Seides

  Investing is simple, but it's not easy. Although I don't trade much, last year I bought Bitcoin in September...

Raphael Arndt – Australia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund CIO (EP.70)

by Ted Seides

 Raff Arndt is the Chief Investment Officer of Australia’s AUZ$145 billion Sovereign Wealth Fund, the Future Fund.  He trained...

Stephen McKeon – Professor of Crypto Security Tokens (EP.69)

by Ted Seides

 Stephen McKeon spent six years out of college working in finance for venture-backed startups before returning to graduate school...

The Death of Passive Management

by Ted Seides

  Published in Institutional Investor on September 9, 2018 Once upon a time, allocators in public markets chose between passive...

Michael Mervosh – Invest in Yourself (EP.68)

by Ted Seides

 Both times I was interviewed (by Khe Hy and Patrick O'Shaughnessy) and shared those conversations on Capital Allocators, I made reference to...

Sarah Williamson – Focusing Capital on the Long-Term (EP.67)

by Ted Seides

 Sarah Williamson is the CEO of FCLTGlobal, a non-profit consortium of large asset managers, allocators, and corporations dedicated to...

Capital Allocators Monthly (Aug 2018)

by Ted Seides

  Back to school, back to work! I'm diving into research on funds investing in Economic Opportunity Zones on behalf...

Kristian Fok – Australia’s CBUS Superannuation CIO

by Ted Seides

-  Kristian Fok is the Chief Investment Officer of Australia’s A46B ($35B USD) Construction & Building Industry Superannuation Fund,...

Josh Wolfe – Seeing the Lux (EP.64)

by Ted Seides

 Josh Wolfe is the co-founder of Lux Capital, a $1.5 billion venture capital firm that targets cutting-edge solutions to...

Ben Reiter – Moneyball 2.0 (EP.64)

by Ted Seides

 Ben Reiter is a senior writer for Sports Illustrated and the author of Astroball:  The New Way to Win...

Roz Hewsenian – Helmsley Trust’s Chief of People and Process (EP.63)

by Ted Seides

 Roz Hewsenian is the Chief Investment Officer of the $6 billion Helmsley Charitable Trust. Prior to joining Helmsley in...

Capital Allocators Monthly (July 2018)

by Ted Seides

  A great month to catch up on reading and listening.  My favorite reads this month triggered mentions of others...

Charley Ellis – Indexing and Its Alternatives (EP.62)

by Ted Seides

 Investment luminary Charley Ellis is the founder of Greenwich Associates, author of 16 books, and one of the most...

Manny Friedman – Non-Linear Financial Systems (EP.61)

by Ted Seides

 Manny Friedman is the CEO of EJF Capital, a firm he co-founded in 2005 that manages $9 billion with...

Anthony Scaramucci – It’s Called A Mooch (EP.60)

by Ted Seides

The name Anthony Scaramucci currently has 55% name recognition in the U.S. according to Politico. Anthony has been an entrepreneur...

Peter Troob – Monkey Business in High Yield (EP.59)

by Ted Seides

 Peter Troob is the co-Founder and CIO of Troob Capital Management, an opportunistic investor and family office with particular...

Capital Allocators Monthly (June 2018)

by Ted Seides

  Summer reading time, and this month was a good one. We launched a premium content subscription to Capital Allocators,...

James Aitken – Macro Strategist Extraordinaire (EP.58)

by Ted Seides

 Australian James Aitken is the Founder and Managing Partner of Aitken Advisors, a one-man macroeconomic consultancy based in Wimbledon,...

Brian Portnoy – From Complex to Simple (EP.57)

by Ted Seides

 Brian Portnoy is the Director of Investment Education at $100 billion investment solutions provider Virtus Investment Partners, where he strives...

Tom Lydon – ETF Trends (EP.56)

by Ted Seides

 Tom Lydon is one of the leading experts in the ETF and mutual fund industries. He is the founder...

Tali Sharot – Optimism, Decisions and Mistakes (EP.55)

by Ted Seides

 Tali Sharot is a leading expert on human decision-making, optimism and emotion. A neuroscientist by trade, Tali combines research...

The Hedge Fund Fee Conundrum

by Ted Seides

  Published in Institutional Investor on June 1, 2018 Five years ago, a friend at a large institutional investor spent...

Capital Allocators Monthly (May 2018)

by Ted Seides

  Spring is upon us (just in time for summer!). My favorite pieces this month came from social media feeds...

John Pfeffer – Crypto for Institutions (EP. 54)

by Ted Seides

 John Pfeffer is an entrepreneur, investor and author of “An (Institutional) Investor’s Take on Cryptoassets.”  He is currently Partner...

Ross Israel – Stable, Predictable Cash Flows (EP.53)

by Ted Seides

Ross Israel is the Head of Global Infrastructure Investments for QIC, Queensland, Australia’s 82B AUZ ($62B USD) investment fund. The...

Kim Lew – The Carnegie Way (EP.52)

by Ted Seides

 Kim Lew is the Vice President and CIO of Carnegie Corporation, where she is responsible for the investment and...

CNBC Clip

by Ted Seides

Back to basics on hedge funds. Watch here  

Paul Black – Gratitude, Fun, and Growth Stocks (EP.51)

by Ted Seides

 Paul Black is Co-CEO and portfolio manager at WCM Investment Management, a $26 billion manager of global equities that...

Capital Allocators Monthly (April 2018)

by Ted Seides

  I'll be heading the Omaha this weekend for my last annual public drubbing.  Stop me and say hello if...

James Williams – Curating The Getty’s Assets (EP.50)

by Ted Seides

   Jim Williams is the Vice President, Chief Investment Officer and Treasurer of the Getty Trust, where he oversees...

Michael Cembalest – Eye on the Market (EP.49)

by Ted Seides

   Michael Cembalest is the Chairman of Market and Investment Strategy for J.P. Morgan Asset & Wealth Management, a...

Steven Galbraith – In the Boardroom (EP.48)

by Ted Seides

   A year ago, I sat down with my friend Steven Galbraith to record the first conversation of Capital...

Chris Brockmeyer – On Broadway (EP. 47)

by Ted Seides

   Chris Brockmeyer is the Director of Employee Benefit Funds for the Broadway League, the national trade association for...

Capital Allocators Monthly (March 2018)

by Ted Seides

  Having fun with these markets (or weather) yet?  The more things stay the same... Reading 1. My latest Institutional...

Andy Redleaf – Evolution of Markets (EP.46)

by Ted Seides

   Andy Redleaf is the Founding Partner of Whitebox Advisors, a $5.5 billion multi-strategy hedge fund launched in 1999...

It’s Not About the Money (EP.45)

by Ted Seides

   Last fall, I sat down with a fellow former hedge fund of funds professional Khe Hy, who left...

Wayne Wicker – Managing for Millions who Matter (EP.44)

by Ted Seides

   Wayne Wicker is the Senior VP and CIO of ICMA Retirement Corporation, an asset manager that oversees $50...

Clare Flynn Levy and Cameron Hight – Moneyball for Managers (EP.43)

by Ted Seides

   Our exploration of the use of modern data analytics to enhance investment results continues this week with two...

Basil Qunibi – Moneyball for Allocators (EP.42)

by Ted Seides

   Increased sophistication in manager assessment is an important trend in the search for alpha. My conversations with Michael...

Capital Allocators Monthly (February 2018)

by Ted Seides

  The more things change, the more they stay the same.  Markets back to the bull, volatility in check, and...

Rick Selvala – Harvesting Volatility (EP.41)

by Ted Seides

   Rick Selvala is the co-founder and CEO of Harvest Volatility, a ten-year old manager of a variety of...

Ali Hamed – Novel Asset Investing (EP.40)

by Ted Seides

   Ali Hamed is the co-founder of CoVenture and Managing Partner of the CoVenture VC Fund.  CoVenture is an...

Annie Duke – Improving Decision Making (EP.39)

by Ted Seides

 Annie Duke is a renown public speaker and decision strategist. For two decades, she was one of the top...

Capital Allocators Monthly (January 2018)

by Ted Seides

  I'm going to endeavor to send out an email monthly with writing and podcast updates. Feel free to pass...

Seth Masters – Investment Polymath (EP.38)

by Ted Seides

  Seth Masters recently retired from Alliance Bernstein, where he spent 26 years across six different careers.  He started as...

Bill Spitz – Seasoned Commodore (EP.37)

by Ted Seides

  Bill Spitz was the longtime head of Vanderbilt University’s endowment before retiring, for the first time, in 2007. He...

Michael Mauboussin – Active Challenges, Rational Decisions and Team Dynamics (EP.36)

by Ted Seides

  Michael Mauboussin currently is the Director of Research at BlueMountain Capital, a multi-billion dollar hedge fund and asset manager. ...

Margaret Chen – Leadership and Outsourcing the Investment Office (EP.35)

by Ted Seides

  Margaret Chen is the Head of CA Capital Management, Cambridge Associates’ $20 billion Outsourced Chief Investment Officer (OCIO) business....

Deep Dive into Hedge Funds (EP.34)

by Ted Seides

  I received several emails over the last bunch of months asking for my take on the investing world and...

Chris Acito – Credit Where Credit is Due (EP.33)

by Ted Seides

  Chris Acito is the CEO and CIO of Gapstow Capital Partners, a credit-focused investment organization. Chris started his career...

Paul Johnson and Paul Sonkin, The Perfect Investment (EP.32)

by Ted Seides

  Paul Sonkin and Paul Johnson are investors, professors, and co-authors of Pitch the Perfect Investment.  Paul Sonkin is an...

Meredith Jenkins – A Path to Trinity (EP.31)

by Ted Seides

  Meredith Jenkins is the Chief Investment Officer of Trinity Wall Street, where she oversees $5.5 billion of the church’s...

Larry Mestel – Making Music Royalties Sing (EP.30)

by Ted Seides

  Larry Mestel is the Founder and Co-CEO of Primary Wave, one of the largest independent full-service entertainment companies. Primary...

Ashby Monk – Asset Giant Futurist (EP.29)

by Ted Seides

  Dr. Ashby Monk is the Executive and Research Director of the Stanford University Global Projects Center. He is also...

Jason Klein – Investing to Cure Cancer (EP.28)

by Ted Seides

  Jason Klein is the Senior Vice President and CIO at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, where he oversees the hospital’s...

Ellen Ellison – Playing to Your Strengths (EP.27)

by Ted Seides

  Ellen Ellison is the Chief Investment Officer of the University of Illinois Foundation, which she joined in 2013 as...

David Barrett – Searching for Leaders (EP.26)

by Ted Seides

  David Barrett is the founder of David Barrett Partners, a leading executive search firm focused exclusively on buy-side asset...

Scott Malpass – The Fighting Irish’s Twelfth Man (EP.25)

by Ted Seides

 Scott Malpass is the esteemed Vice President and CIO of Notre Dame University, where he oversees the school's $12...

Jim Dunn – Protect, Perform, Provide (EP.24)

by Ted Seides

  Jim Dunn is the CEO and CIO of Verger Capital Management, an Outsourced CIO business whose anchor client is...

Dan Egan – Better Investment Outcomes (EP.23)

by Ted Seides

  Dan Egan is the Director of Behavioral Finance and Investing at Betterment, the leading robo-advisor overseeing $10 billion in...

Chatri Sityodtong – Warrior Spirit (EP.22)

by Ted Seides

  Chatri Sityodtong is the Founder and Chairman of ONE Championship, Asia’s largest sports media property. Chatri started his career...

Richard Lawrence – Compounding in Asia (EP.21)

by Ted Seides

   Richard Lawrence is the Chairman and Executive Director of The Overlook Group, a $5 billion investment organization focused...

Kip McDaniel – CIO Whisperer (EP.20)

by Ted Seides

  Kip McDaniel is the Chief Content Officer and Editorial Director at Institutional Investor.  Prior to joining II a year...

Dan Schorr – Death, Ice Cream, and Entrepreneurship (EP.19)

by Ted Seides

  Dan Schorr is the founder of Vice Cream, an early stage company that is bringing back unapologetic indulgence to...

Thomas DeLong – Authentic Leadership (EP.18)

by Ted Seides

  Tom DeLong is a renown expert in organizational behavior, leadership, and human development of high performance professionals, the so...

Adam Blitz – Inside Hedge Fund Allocation (EP.17)

by Ted Seides

   Adam Blitz is the CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Evanston Capital Management, a $4.5 billion hedge fund...

Thomas Russo – Buy and Hold…and Then What (EP.16)

by Ted Seides

   Tom Russo is the Managing Member of Gardner Russo & Gardner, where he manages $11 billion in a...

Reflections – Hardly a Waste of Time (EP.15)

by Ted Seides

  A few months ago, an idea came to me to share some conversations with great capital allocators that I’ve...

Chris Douvos – Venture Capital’s Super LP (EP.14)

by Ted Seides

   Chris Douvos is Managing Director at Venture Investment Associates, a fund that invests $1B in commitments to venture...

Mario Therrien – The Canadian Pension Model (EP.12)

by Ted Seides

   Mario Therrien is Senior Vice President of External Portfolio Management at Canadian asset manager Caisse de dépôt et...

Larry Kochard – Endowment Professor (EP.11)

by Ted Seides

  Larry Kochard is the CEO and CIO of the University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO), where he provides...

David “Bull” Gurfein – Interdisciplinary Lessons from the Marines (EP.10)

by Ted Seides

  David Gurfein, whose nickname “Bull” fits the bill, is a decorated Marine Corps Combat veteran who enlisted at age...

Jeffrey Solomon – Vision, Tenacity, and Empathy (EP.09)

by Ted Seides

   Jeffrey Solomon is the President of publicly listed Cowen Group (TK: COWN), a financial services company focused on...

Charley Ellis – Multiple Ways to Win (EP.08)

by Ted Seides

  Charley Ellis is one of the most highly regarded experts in the investment business.  After spending nearly a decade...

Jenny Heller – Thinking it Through (EP.07)

by Ted Seides

  Jenny Heller is the President and Chief Investment Officer of Brandywine Trust Group.  Brandywine formed 25 years ago to...

Josh Brown – When Witchcraft Failed (EP.06)

by Ted Seides

  Josh Brown is the CEO of Ritholz Wealth Management, a NYC-based financial advisor that helps people align their investments...

The Bet with Buffett (EP.05)

by Ted Seides

  Today’s show is a little different from my ongoing series of conversations with Capital Allocators.  As you probably know,...

Tom Lenehan – Perpetual Thinking at Rockefeller University (EP.04)

by Ted Seides

   Tom Lenehan is the Deputy Chief Investment Officer of The Rockefeller University, where he helps lead the management...

Brett Barth – Asset Allocation for Families (EP.03)

by Ted Seides

   Brett Barth is a founder, Managing Partner, and Director of Investment Research at BBR Partners. BBR manages north...

André Perold – The Academic Practitioner (EP.02)

by Ted Seides

  André Perold is the Chief Investment Officer and Co-Managing Partner at HighVista Strategies, where for the last dozen years...

Steven Galbraith – Five Tool Player (EP.01)

by Ted Seides

  Steve Galbraith is an investment manager, brilliant writer, engaging thinker and one of the most well-liked men on Wall...