The University of Texas system’s endowment is now the second largest in the US after a 24% increase, amounting to $25.4bn.
Texas’ endowment overtook Yale’s, which increased 15% to $23.9bn in the year ending 30 June 2014. Yale had held the second spot since 2002, and is only eclipsed by Harvard University, which currently has an endowment of $35.9bn.
The increase has been largely driven by the US resurgence in the oil markets. The University of Texas has been generating large royalty revenues from fracking activities taking place on land it owns. The value of the lands the System owns has increased 70% to $8bn over the last fiscal year.
Bruce Zimmerman, CEO of University of Texas Investment Management, told Bloomberg: “The price of oil and hydraulic fracking out in West Texas has been very, very good. One of the sources of growth in the overall assets has come from those contributions into the fund from the oil and gas royalty revenue.”
