On a Tuesday in early April, David Swensen sat onstage in a gradually filling lecture hall. Sunlight slanted through a Tiffany stained-glass window of angels personifying various pursuits of the mind. Outside, tour groups moved along the paths of Yale’s Old Campus, spilling onto topsoil ventilated with small holes to speed the growth of the grass upon which undergrads would picturesquely recline in warmer weather.
Swensen is a legend at Yale, and its highest-paid employee. But he’s neither the university president nor the football coach. He’s the money manager who for 34 years has been in charge of the endowment—the multibillion-dollar pool of money, seeded and fed by donations, that comprises Yale’s fortune. It’s largely thanks to Swensen that the university can woo star scholars, that its admissions can be need-blind, its libraries and cafeterias staffed, its sports teams fielded, its grad students stipended, its antique windows tended, and its lawns aerated.
The afternoon’s event was a conversation on personal finance with NPR correspondent Chris Arnold. “This is my passion,” Swensen told the audience. He warned about how money managers can take advantage of their clients. “All of the ads that you see steer you in the wrong direction, because it’s ad money being spent by for-profit organizations.” In khakis, a button-down, and a fleece vest with a Y over his chest, Swensen at 65 is square-jawed, with a teenager’s gangly frame. Several years ago he began receiving treatment for cancer. Onstage, he moved with evident effort, and his speech was punctuated by pauses for breath.
Denne historien er fra September 16, 2019-utgaven av Bloomberg Businessweek.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra September 16, 2019-utgaven av Bloomberg Businessweek.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Instagram's Founders Say It's Time for a New Social App
The rise of AI and the fall of Twitter could create opportunities for upstarts
Running in Circles
A subscription running shoe program aims to fight footwear waste
What I Learned Working at a Hawaiien Mega-Resort
Nine wild secrets from the staff at Turtle Bay, who have to manage everyone from haughty honeymooners to go-go-dancing golfers.
How Noma Will Blossom In Kyoto
The best restaurant in the world just began its second pop-up in Japan. Here's what's cooking
The Last-Mover Problem
A startup called Sennder is trying to bring an extremely tech-resistant industry into the age of apps
Tick Tock, TikTok
The US thinks the Chinese-owned social media app is a major national security risk. TikTok is running out of ways to avoid a ban
Cleaner Clothing Dye, Made From Bacteria
A UK company produces colors with less water than conventional methods and no toxic chemicals
Pumping Heat in Hamburg
The German port city plans to store hot water underground and bring it up to heat homes in the winter
Sustainability: Calamari's Climate Edge
Squid's ability to flourish in warmer waters makes it fitting for a diet for the changing environment
New Money, New Problems
In Naples, an influx of wealthy is displacing out-of-towners lower-income workers
