The University of Austin is set to establish a Bitcoin investment fund aimed at exploring the long-term potential of digital assets within its endowment strategy. According to a report from the Financial Times, the 142-year-old institution is raising a $5 million Bitcoin fund as part of its $200 million endowment, making it the first university in the U.S. to launch a dedicated fund focused on Bitcoin.
An endowment is a collection of donated funds that a university invests to generate returns over time, which are then used to support various operational costs, scholarships, research, and more.
The University of Austin’s Bitcoin fund will be organized as a long-term investment, with plans to hold Bitcoin for a minimum of five years. Chad Thevenot, the university’s senior vice president for advancement, noted that the institution views Bitcoin as possessing “long-term value,” comparable to investments in “stocks or real estate.”
Initially announced in May, this fund is a collaboration with Bitcoin financial services firm Unchained, which will manage the custody of the fund’s Bitcoin holdings.
While the University of Austin is the first to create a dedicated Bitcoin fund, it is not alone in exploring cryptocurrency investments. Emory University in Georgia made headlines in October by becoming the first U.S. college endowment to gain exposure to Bitcoin, having disclosed a $15.1 million investment in Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Additionally, Stanford University’s Blyth Fund has allocated 7% of its portfolio to Bitcoin. In March, the fund, which is backed by the endowment and managed by students, invested in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF following a proposal from Stanford’s Blockchain Club, making purchases when Bitcoin was priced at $45,000 per coin.