Insights Blog

The State as a Shareholder: Government Equity Stakes

Haider Hassan — Mon, 21 Sep 2026 16:30:00 GMT

The U.S. government has historically exerted its influence on private industry through several mechanisms including grants, loans, regulatory frameworks and tax incentives. Now seems to be the dawn of a new paradigm, with federal agencies accumulating government equity stakes, along with using other instruments, to become a line item on a capitalization table. Since January 2025, Washington has announced $27.7 billion in investments across thirty-nine deals, according to the Council on Foreign Relations’ U.S. Government Deal Tracker as of July 2026.

Applying the Six Ps to Mission-Aligned Investing | Commonfund

Commonfund Institute — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 13:25:19 GMT

The case for mission-aligned investing continues to grow stronger — not simply as an ethical stance, but as a matter of institutional coherence, stakeholder trust, and long-term risk management. For a growing number of institutions, the question is no longer whether to engage with mission-aligned investing (MAI), but how to do so with the same rigor and governance discipline applied to every other dimension of endowment stewardship.

Our new paper, Principles of Investment Stewardship: Mission-Aligned Investing for Nonprofit Organizations — A Six Ps Framework for Integrating Values, Mission, and Financial Stewardship, applies Commonfund Institute'sSix Ps governance framework — Purpose, Policy, Process, Portfolio, People, and Performance — to one of the most consequential questions nonprofit fiduciaries face: how to align the investment portfolio with the institution's values and mission.

Key Findings From the 2025 Study of Foundations | Commonfund

Commonfund Institute — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 17:33:49 GMT

Investment results, asset allocation, spending and governance practices reported by 285 private and community foundations for the year ended December 31, 2025.

Study at a glance

285

participating foundations
$126.9B

total assets represented
$445M

average assets per foundation

Private foundations171 Community foundations114

Performance

Average total net returns and long-term return objective. All returns are net of fees.

One-year average total net return

Private 14.1%

Community 14.7%

Ten-year average total net return

Private 9.0%

Community 8.6%

Average long-term return objective

Private 7.4%

Community 7.2%

Long-term returns

Net annualized returns as of December 31, 2025.

15-year average total net return

Private 8.1%

Community 7.9%

20-year average total net return

Private 7.2%

Community 7.1%

Asset allocation

Dollar-weighted average allocation. May not add to 100 percent due to rounding.

U.S. equities
Fixed income
Non-U.S. equities
Alternative strategies
Short-term securities, cash and other

Private foundations

Community foundations

Spending

5.2 %
average stated policy spend rate, private foundations: 4.6 %
average stated policy spend rate, community foundations

Investment management

Use an outsourced investment office

Private 39%

Community 47%

Use an investment consultant

Private 53%

Community 61%

Share of portfolio outsourced, among those outsourcing

Private 93.4%

Community 89.7%

Responsible investing

Share of foundations that seek to include investments with:

ESG

Private 28%

Community 26%

Negative screening

Private 25%

Community 10%

Impact investing

Private 29%

Community 26%

Diverse managers

Private 20%

Community 21%

Gifts and donations

Community foundations only. Prior-year figures in parentheses.

51 %
reported an increase in gifts (46% in 2024): 34 %
reported a decrease in gifts (41% in 2024): 79 %
median growth among those reporting an increase

Source: 2025 Council on Foundations–Commonfund Study of Investment of Endowments for Private and Community Foundations®. All returns are net of fees. Asset allocations are dollar-weighted and may not add to 100 percent due to rounding.

Investment Policy Statement: The Document Behind Every Decision

Commonfund Institute — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 12:51:01 GMT

Policy | Principle II | Principles of Investment Stewardship

An investment committee can have talented members, a well-diversified portfolio, and a thoughtful manager roster — and still make poor governance decisions. Often, the missing element isn't expertise or effort. It's a clear, current Investment Policy Statement (IPS).

The IPS is the subject of Principle II of Commonfund Institute's Principles of Investment Stewardship for Nonprofit Organizations whitepaper — and for good reason. It functions as the investment committee's strategic plan: asset allocation, annual spending, risk tolerance, and how liquidity is managed across the balance sheet all flow from it.

Why 30-Year Treasury Yields Are at 2007 Highs — And What It Means for Your Portfolio

Haider Hassan — Mon, 17 Aug 2026 18:30:00 GMT

Amidst all the headlines of a new $500 billion financing partnership Nvidia struck with six of Wall Street’s largest investors to fund the buildout of AI infrastructure, the same borrowing wave is reshaping the bond market. The 30-year Treasury bond yield has now held above 5 percent for the longest stretch since 2007. A recent auction priced the 30-year at 5.058 percent, the highest auction yield since 2007.

How do Endowments Work? Common Misconceptions

allison.kaspriske@commonfund.org (Allison Kaspriske) — Mon, 10 Aug 2026 19:26:10 GMT

In recent months, institutional endowments, particularly those within higher education, have been subject to heightened scrutiny. This attention has, at times, created tension and contributed to the spread of misinformation, especially among those unfamiliar with the purpose and structure of these long-term funds. This has led to growing confusion about how endowments can be used, potentially weakening their purpose.

5 Takeaways from the 2026 NACUBO Annual Meeting

allison.kaspriske@commonfund.org (Allison Kaspriske) — Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:03:44 GMT

If you've already read Inside Higher Ed's recap of the NACUBO Annual Meeting (held in Anaheim from July 18-21), "A Call to Meet the Moment at NACUBO,” you know federal policy uncertainty dominated conversations among attendees, speakers urged business officers to react to actual law rather than social media noise, and Chief Business Officers (CBOs) are increasingly experimenting with AI in their own offices. But there was much more that resonated throughout the conference for me.

Philanthropy and Fundraising: Trends & Leadership Insights

Amanda Novello — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 15:01:09 GMT

At the 2026 Investment Stewardship Academy, held at Yale University this past June, three leaders in the philanthropic sector — Dr. Amir Pasic, Eugene R. Tempel Dean at Indiana University's Lilly Family School of Philanthropy; Dr. Karen DuBois-Walton, President and CEO of the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven; and Gretchen Wood, Vice President of Institutional Advancement and Executive Director of Monroe Community College and Foundation — sat down to connect the dots between fundraising, endowment stewardship, leadership, and storytelling. What emerged was a candid picture of a sector that is generous but increasingly tenuous, and a set of practical lessons on how organizations are adapting.

Endowment Purpose and UPMIFA: What Nonprofit Boards Must Ask

Commonfund Institute — Thu, 23 Jul 2026 20:00:00 GMT

Purpose | Principle I | Principles of Investment Stewardship

The Question Every Endowment Fiduciary Should Be Asking

For many nonprofit organizations, the endowment is the difference between fulfilling a mission and curtailing it. That's not a rhetorical flourish — it's a governance reality that boards and investment committees navigate every year. And yet, one of the most consequential questions in endowment stewardship is often the one that goes unasked:

Building a Resilient Portfolio: Navigating Demographic Shifts and AI-Driven Productivity

Haider Hassan — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 18:30:00 GMT

The June jobs report was one of contradictions. Payrolls grew by a lackluster 57,000 versus consensus expectations of 115,000. However, unemployment dropped slightly to 4.2% compared to May’s 4.3% headline figure. Looking beneath the surface, the drop in the headline unemployment rate was actually driven by 720,000 individuals leaving the labor force entirely. In fact, labor force participation fell to 61.5 percent, the lowest since March 2021 and, excluding the pandemic, the lowest in almost 50 years. A single month of data proves little on its own, but it reflects a broader trend, where the demographic tailwind that once supported the economy could now be fading.