According to sources familiar with the matter, a number of Ivy League universities including the University of Michigan, Brown, Yale, and Harvard endowments have been discreetly purchasing cryptocurrencies. The prominent schools have been reportedly leveraging exchanges like Coinbase and other trading platforms.
Prominent university endowments have been quietly purchasing digital currencies according to a report written by the financial columnist Ian Allison. The reporters detailed that “two sources” have explained that a number of well known colleges have been purchasing digital currencies from specific exchanges like Coinbase.
The report notes that university endowments from schools such as Brown, the University of Michigan, Harvard, and Yale have been buying crypto-assets quietly.
Allison details that his sources say that “there are quite a few” university endowment programs doing this and “a lot of endowments are allocating a little bit to crypto at the moment.” The sources also explained that some of the colleges have stored funds on exchanges for at least a year and a half.
“It could be since mid-2019,” the source told Allison. “Most have been in at least a year. I would think they will probably discuss it publicly at some point this year. I suspect they would be sitting on some pretty nice chunks of return.”
It has been known for quite some time that well known colleges have been purchasing bitcoin (BTC) and crypto funds for endowment purposes. Back in February 2019, news.Bitcoin.com reported on the financial endowment fund of the University of Michigan that invested in the crypto venture capital fund managed by Andreessen Horowitz.
In May 2019, sources familiar with the matter explained that Ivy League school Yale had invested in the cryptocurrency fund Paradigm. Yale’s endowment is the second-largest in higher education today.
Colleges all around the world have been into cryptocurrencies for a very long time and high net worth individuals have regularly donated bitcoin and other crypto assets to popular universities. Numerous universities accept digital currency donations or have crypto backers funding these schools.
Other schools that accept crypto and offer elective courses that teach blockchain technology include the likes of Stanford, MIT, Cornell, Puget Sound, and Princeton.
What do you think about university endowments like the University of Michigan, Brown, Yale, and Harvard purchasing crypto assets? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.