Even Harvard Geniuses Couldn’t Escape: Belief in a Bitcoin Surge Leads to Heavy Losses

Nearly $500 Million Invested in Bitcoin ETF
Estimated Investment Loss Exceeds 14%

Among virtual assets, Bitcoin, the most valuable, is slipping helplessly. The $90,000 level collapsed for the first time in seven months, wiping out 30% of the gains accumulated this year in just one month. In terms of market capitalization, this represents a loss of approximately $600 billion (about 880 trillion won). In this context, Harvard University, which significantly increased its cryptocurrency investments last quarter by investing nearly $500 million in the iShares Bitcoin Trust, a Bitcoin ETF, is also reported to have suffered substantial investment losses.

Including Ivy League universities, most American universities invest as part of their revenue-generating industries, but Harvard University's average annual investment return over the past decade has lagged behind other universities. Photo by AP Yonhap News

On December 2 (local time), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Harvard University's losses from its Bitcoin-related investments amounted to at least 14%. The average price at which Harvard invested in the ETF was not disclosed. However, WSJ estimated that if Harvard still holds this investment, the loss would be at least 14% or more.

Even if the investment was made at the lowest point of the quarter, in early July, the current value is nearly $40 million (about 59 billion won) lower than the initial investment of about $294 million (430 billion won). However, WSJ noted that Harvard's investment loss is negligible compared to the university's massive endowment, which totals $57 billion (84 trillion won). According to Harvard's end-of-quarter disclosure, its Bitcoin investments account for less than 1% of the total endowment. Besides Harvard, Brown University (BlackRock Bitcoin ETF, $14 million) and Emory University (Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, $52 million) were also reported to have invested in cryptocurrencies in the third quarter.

Among virtual assets, Bitcoin, the most valuable, is slipping helplessly. The $90,000 level collapsed for the first time in seven months, wiping out 30% of the gains accumulated this year in just one month. Photo by The Asia Business Daily Database

Including Ivy League universities, most American universities invest as part of their revenue-generating industries, but Harvard University's average annual investment return over the past decade has lagged behind other universities. According to Makov Process International, Harvard's average annual investment return over the past ten years was 8.2%, ranking ninth among the top ten prestigious American universities, including the Ivy League. As of the end of June, Harvard reported an investment return of 11.9%. While this return is decent, it is lower than that of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (14.8%) or Stanford University (14.3%).