> SFU Business students manage endowment fund to double-digit returns
SFU Business students manage endowment fund to double-digit returns
December 5, 2007
It’s a case of the student schooling the master: since 2003, SFU Business students have achieved an impressive 13.2 percent return on Canada’s largest, student-managed university endowment fund—beating the benchmark for all of SFU’s professionally managed endowment funds.
The Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS) is comprised of students from the Global Asset and Wealth Management (GAWM) MBA program, the Master of Financial Risk Management program, and undergraduate business students in the finance stream.
The fund, which includes Canadian equities and bonds as well as global equities, was established with a $5.7 million donation from the Lohn Foundation and enhanced recently by a smaller contribution from HSBC Canada. In just four years, its value has doubled to $10 million and represents about five per cent of the value of all SFU endowments.
“This unique program is the best example of academic and administrative collaboration I have ever seen,” says SFU’s treasurer Jim Boyd. He notes that API Asset Performance Inc., an independent national consulting firm that measures investment performance, ranked SIAS in the top 25 per cent of Canadian balanced-fund mandates in their survey for the four years ended June 30, 2007.
Says GAWM student Jenn Julé: “While not a formal credit class, SIAS is one of the most valuable parts of the GAWM program. Many business schools only offer a hypothetical portfolio. In managing SIAS, we’re accountable. You dig in deeper when it’s real money.”
Students receive mentorship from industry and academic experts who ensure their decisions are backed by comprehensive research and appropriate risk assessments and that they comply with the SFU board of governors’ established guidelines.
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The Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS) is comprised of students from the Global Asset and Wealth Management (GAWM) MBA program, the Master of Financial Risk Management program, and undergraduate business students in the finance stream.
The fund, which includes Canadian equities and bonds as well as global equities, was established with a $5.7 million donation from the Lohn Foundation and enhanced recently by a smaller contribution from HSBC Canada. In just four years, its value has doubled to $10 million and represents about five per cent of the value of all SFU endowments.
“This unique program is the best example of academic and administrative collaboration I have ever seen,” says SFU’s treasurer Jim Boyd. He notes that API Asset Performance Inc., an independent national consulting firm that measures investment performance, ranked SIAS in the top 25 per cent of Canadian balanced-fund mandates in their survey for the four years ended June 30, 2007.
Says GAWM student Jenn Julé: “While not a formal credit class, SIAS is one of the most valuable parts of the GAWM program. Many business schools only offer a hypothetical portfolio. In managing SIAS, we’re accountable. You dig in deeper when it’s real money.”
Students receive mentorship from industry and academic experts who ensure their decisions are backed by comprehensive research and appropriate risk assessments and that they comply with the SFU board of governors’ established guidelines.
-30-