The large university endowment funds ushered in a bumper year.

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Authors: Andrew Ross Sorkin, Jason Karaian, Sarah Kessler, Stephen Gandel, Lauren Hirsch, Ephrat Livni and Anna Schaverien

University endowment fund managers who have long been criticized for paying fees to private equity firms and hedge funds have something worth showing: jaw-dropping returns. Yesterday, MIT reported that its endowment fund increased by 56% in the most recent fiscal year ending in June. Yale University also announced its latest return yesterday. Its endowment fund increased by 40% over the same period, which is the third highest annual return since 1970. Dartmouth University reported a return close to 47%. Duke reported a 56% return.

Harvard, which has the largest endowment fund (worth $53 billion), said yesterday that its fiscal year return lags behind many competitors, increasing by only 34%. Harvard's endowment fund manager said that this "huge" return reflects the "opportunity cost of taking lower risks" compared to many of the school's peers.

An important reason for the income is the investment in private equity companies, which in some years received more fees than the tuition paid by the endowment fund. Harvard’s private equity investments accounted for one-third of its total investment portfolio, with a return of 77% in the most recent fiscal year. Venture capital funds have also achieved substantial returns: The University of North Carolina has received a return of 142% from its $10 billion endowment fund.

Are these rewards worth the risk? In recent years, many endowment funds like Harvard have increased their allocation of private equity, venture capital, and hedge funds, claiming that this provides vital diversification to broader stock and bond market trends. These "alternative" investments may bring huge returns, but require high fees, but they are less predictable than more conservative options. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose by about 40% in the 12 months to June, which made it possible for endowment funds to return. Even with UNC's venture capital gains, its total donations increased by 42%. Nearly 40% of Yale's funds are private equity funds, which are equivalent to the returns of diversified index funds.

High returns also complicate the debate about the taxation status of large endowments. One of the few tax increases promoted by President Donald Trump is a 1.4% tax on the investment income of the largest university endowment fund. Faced with lobbying by affected agencies, Democrats have discussed tax cuts as part of the slow passage of Congress’s spending bill. The generous returns that many schools have just reported may make this harder to prove.

This is the first day of full vaccination in Italy. Now, all workers in the public and private sectors must show proof of vaccination against the coronavirus or they will take unpaid leave. There was a long line outside the country’s office buildings, and officials prepared for the protest. With the first such authorization for Western democracy coming into effect, please follow the live updates of The Times.

The FDA team recommended the Moderna booster. The consultants voted unanimously to approve the half-dose booster of the coronavirus vaccine. Those eligible for additional injections include those over 65 and other adults deemed to be at high risk, and these groups are now eligible for Pfizer's BioNTech booster.

Boeing’s troubles are even greater. A former Boeing pilot accused of defrauding the FAA was indicted by a federal grand jury for his statement on the 737 Max jet, which was involved in two crashes and killed 346 people. In addition, the company is dealing with a new type of defect on its 787 Dreamliner.

LinkedIn will shut down its social networking services in China. Microsoft-owned websites cited "a more challenging operating environment and higher compliance requirements" when taking action. It is one of the last foreign social networking sites to operate in China — Twitter and Facebook have been blocked for many years, and Google left more than a decade ago — and will provide Chinese users with a new application that focuses solely on recruitment information.

Netflix faces external criticism and internal turmoil. Comedian Dave Chappelle's special show "The Closer" is called transgender by multiple organizations including GLAAD. It has plunged Netflix into difficult cultural debates, which usually focus on Facebook and Google. These debates are being staged in heated internal discussions as employees accuse the executives of the streaming media giant of contributing to the spread of hate speech.

This week, the largest bank in the United States announced substantial third-quarter earnings, pushing the stock market higher. Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo have seen their profits increase by more than 50% on average. (Goldman Sachs will release a report later today.) It is a series of transaction activities that generate fees that drive the growth of bank profits, but their other businesses, such as transactions and loans, are declining.

These six banks hold more than 40% of all assets in the industry, which means that their wealth can provide a very good indicator for the overall economy. This is the prediction:

Partly sunny days and unusually high temperatures: strong M&A transactions. Expenses hit a record high, indicating that executives are optimistic about the future. Consumers are also opening their wallets. Credit card spending by Bank of America, Citibank and JPMorgan Chase increased by more than 20% in the third quarter over a year ago. "If you look at the economy, it is improving, people are increasing spending, and companies will have to start investing," Bank of America chief financial officer Paul Donofrio said yesterday.

There may be thunderstorms in the later period: the trading income of JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup has declined, and the trading income of Morgan Stanley has increased slightly, reflecting the recent market turmoil. More importantly, a large part of the bank's revenue in the most recent quarter came from precautionary funds. Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo have drawn a total of $6 billion from accounts designed to cover future loan losses. The overall loan growth was disappointing again. If higher spending shows optimism for today, then a lack of loans may indicate that consumers and businesses are still seeing clouds.

"We need some of the greatest minds and thoughts in the world to focus on repairing this planet, not looking for the next habitable place."

-Prince William, aiming at billionaires to spend their money on going to space instead of fighting climate change on Earth.

"State-owned companies are going their own way. They don't care about the political pressure on global emissions control."

— René Ortiz, former Secretary-General of OPEC and former Minister of Energy of Ecuador, René Ortiz, talked about how government-owned energy companies can increase production when American and European companies cut supply due to climate issues.

"This is a car that slows down before turning, but it is still faster than we have ever been before."

--Igor Popov, chief economist at Apartment List, talked about the rapid increase in rent prices, which is triggering inflation and forcing policymakers to respond.

Some academic studies that caught our attention this week can be summarized in one sentence:

There are two broad views on why people are always poor, and only one view is supported by research. (Claire Barboni and others)

The work requirements of the social safety net program are more to prevent people from enjoying benefits than to promote employment. (Colin Gray et al.)

Among billionaires, the super-rich are not considered to be better-looking than just the very wealthy. (Daniel Hammesh and Andrew Leigh)

The reduction in working hours is related to the weight gain of some workers. (Joan Costa-Font and Belen Saenz de Miera Juarez)

On days of severe air pollution, violent crime will increase. (Evan Hernstadt and others)

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase started a high-profile public policy campaign yesterday, publishing its blueprint for encryption regulations on GitHub, which is mainly used as an open source software code base to solicit public comments. A Coinbase spokeswoman told DealBook: "Our purpose of issuing this proposal is to promote a wide-ranging dialogue and conduct it in an open and democratic manner."

Federal agencies are racing to address the potential risks of the fast-growing crypto industry, and emerging lobby groups have emerged in the form of influencing regulations.

Coinbase is flipping the script. Traditionally, legislators and regulators seek public opinion when considering new rules and regulations. But Coinbase seems to be losing patience. Last month, it had a public dispute with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on the proposed crypto product on Twitter, and now it has cleverly chosen the government as the role of the people's representative.

But old-fashioned lobbying is still important. The company told reporters that although Coinbase did not submit its proposal to the Senate Banking Committee, which recently requested advice on crypto regulations, it met with staff from 30 congressional offices and directly approached at least 20 congressmen before it was released. . It said it also "contacted" the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Cryptocurrency advocates are pouring into the area. Coinbase's early investor venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz submitted its ideas to the banking group, and representatives have been touring Washington this week to advance the company's views. Former federal prosecutor Katie Haun is also in town, she is the co-leader of the Anderson Crypto Fund.

"Crypto knows how to get in touch with members," Christian Smith of the Blockchain Association told lawyers at an event of the Washington Bar Association this week. She said the industry’s ability to engage with Congress and encourage fans to express its policy views is unique. She added that cryptocurrencies now "have more say and seats." She said that mobilizing cryptocurrency Twitter-a "highly communicated community"-is a "special tool" for the industry.

Activist investor Jana Partners already holds a stake in Macy's and is pushing the retailer to divest its e-commerce business. (Wall Street Journal)

LeBron James' SpringHill Entertainment Group sold a minority stake to four investors at a valuation of $725 million-Redbird Capital of Gricardinal, Fenway Sports Group, Nike and Epic Games. (New York Times)

The stock price of software provider GitLab rose 35% in the first day of trading, bringing its valuation to nearly $15 billion. (CNBC)

The People's Bank of China stated that the risks brought by the Evergrande crisis to China's financial system are "controllable." (Reuters)

Some analysts say that plant-based food companies are not transparent enough in terms of emissions to judge whether their food is more sustainable than meat. (New York Times)

"Shareholder democracy is undergoing a larger test run" (New York Times)

YouTube has adopted stricter policies on election misinformation, resulting in fewer misleading videos on Facebook and Twitter. (New York Times)

Cybersecurity experts say that Apple and the European Union's plans to monitor illegal materials on mobile phones are both ineffective and dangerous. (New York Times)

The real cause of the energy contraction in the UK and the rest of Europe. (New York Times)

"Your Black Friday deal is stuck somewhere in the Pacific Ocean." (Bloomberg View)

The United States lacks approximately 4.3 million workers. Where did they go? (Wall Street Journal)

The researchers said that the shorter working week trial in Iceland was an "overwhelming success." (Bloomberg)

"The unvaccinated people may not be what you think" (Time View)

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