An investment fund set up to help Oxford University colleges generate more steady returns from their capital is to be opened to private investors for the first time.
Oxford Investment Partners (Oxip), which was founded by Deutsche Asset Management's former chief executive Paul Berriman and chief investment officer Karl Sternberg, has launched a new feeder fund, designed to attract high-net worth individuals with more than £100,000 to invest.
Oxip was set up earlier this year to sate demand, from a growing number of Oxford colleges, for an investment fund with a more diversified investment strategy. Having been impressed by the money which US rivals such as Yale have generated by opting for an alternative investment strategy, a handful of Oxford colleges decided to attempt to follow suit. The Oxip fund invests in assets such as private equity and commodities, rather than the traditional mix of equities and bonds. It aims to achieve an annual return of 5 per cent per annum, over a five-year period.
The fund has five Oxford clients - St Catherine's, Christ Church, Balliol, St John's and New colleges which collectively own 60 per cent of the fund. The remainder is owned by the fund's management. The new feeder fund will invest solely in the original Oxip fund. Mr Sternberg said: "The successful launch of Oxford Investment Partners earlier this year has attracted considerable interest from high net worth individuals whose investment priorities are closely aligned with those of colleges, charities and endowments."
Click for the Oxford Times 16/6/06, the OXIP prospectus and Cherwell 14/10/06.