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Investment Strategy | Articles

Viewpoint | Top Concerns for Community Foundations: Donor-Advised Fund Regulations

Potential regulations on donor-advised funds (DAFs) and their effect on the philanthropic sector was the most-cited concern among community foundations in this year’s Council on...

Perspectives | Press Releases

FY23 NACUBO-Commonfund Study Released

U.S. Higher Education Endowments Report 7.7% Return for FY23 While Spending More in Support of Their Missions 50th anniversary NACUBO-Commonfund Study shows participating colleges and universities...

Governance And Policy | Videos

2025 Policy Outlook: What Endowments and Foundations Should Know

Looking back at 2024, uncertainty was the name of the game: inflation, interest rates, market volatility, emerging technology, recession potential, and geopolitical risks all played a role. As we...

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Responsible Investing | Articles

Insights from Institutionally-Related Foundations

Last month at Commonfund Forum 2025, we convened senior leaders of institutionally-related foundations (IRFs) to discuss trends among their institutions and peers uncovered in the FY2024...
Perspectives | Insights Blog

The Power of We: How Collective Learning and Data Sharing Make Us Stronger

In the midst of today’s volatile economic and policy landscape, collective learning has become not just beneficial but essential for institutional investors. The nonprofit sector as a whole is facing...
Perspectives | Insights Blog

Study of Independent Schools Marks its 20-Year Milestone

In 2005, what was then called the National Business Officers Association (now NBOA: Business Leadership for Independent Schools) had reached the seventh anniversary of its founding. Having its...
Investment Strategy | Videos

Chief Investment Officers Share Their Thoughts at Forum 2025

Commonfund hosted its annual Commonfund Forum 2025, March 9-11th, in Orlando, Florida. The agenda included a range of sessions on relevant topics for institutional investors. This Forum Spotlight...
Market Commentary | Insights Blog

Policy Uncertainty Impacts All Assets (Not Just Equities!)

Since the February peak in the S&P 500, reams of newsprint have been dedicated to the volatility in the equity markets and to a lesser extent the U.S. Treasury markets – but what about the U.S....
Private Equity | Private Equity Insights

Data Centers, AI and the Evolving Energy Landscape

You can't just flip the switch. As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to reshape industries and redefine technological capability, it is also poised to become one of the most significant drivers...
Perspectives | Insights Blog

Key Takeaways from the 2025 CASE Conference for College & University Foundations

Commonfund Institute provides analysis and thought leadership across the nonprofit institutional investing space. But investments don’t happen in a vacuum – they are part of the institutional...
Responsible Investing | Insights Blog

Fiduciaries Guide to Mission-Aligned Investing

At Commonfund Forum 2025, Caroline Greer, Managing Director, Commonfund OCIO and George Suttles, Executive Director, Commonfund Institute sat down with panelists, Margot Brandenburg, Senior Program...
Outsourced Cio | Insights Blog

Increased Use of OCIO for Independent Schools

Data from the 2024 Commonfund Benchmarks Study of Independent Schools (CSIS) show that schools across the size spectrum reported an increase in use of an outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO)...
Investment Strategy | Insights Blog

In Pursuit of Intergenerational Equity: Inflation is the Big Headwind

For all the differing goals and objectives laid out by colleges and universities for their endowments, one that is universally shared is intergenerational equity, or the concept that endowed...
Investment Strategy | Articles

Portfolio Construction in the Era of the Mag 7

How do you build your U.S. equities allocation when a handful of stocks account for more than half of the S&P 500’s return? The aptly named Magnificent 7 stocks (Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta...
Governance And Policy | Insights Blog

A Closer Look at Religious Independent Schools

Earlier this year, Commonfund Institute released the 20th annual Commonfund Benchmarks Study of Independent Schools (“CSIS” or the “Study”), reporting on key investment governance trends and insights...