University Finances
Harvard’s Endowment Goes Big on Bitcoin and Gold in Second Quarter of 2025
Harvard Management Company made substantial new investments in exchange-traded funds tracking the value of gold and Bitcoin during the second quarter of 2025, marking a sharp shift in its directly held public equities portfolio after it backed out of many Big Tech positions last quarter.
Harvard Spends Record-High $270,000 on Lobbying in Second Quarter of 2025
Harvard spent $270,000 lobbying the federal government between April and June as it ramped up efforts to counter mounting political and financial pressures from Washington, according to disclosures filed last month.
HMS Announces Spike in Donations, $18 Million Pledge from Blavatnik as Trump Drains Research Funding
Harvard Medical School has pulled in a raft of donations and a major gift from billionaire Leonard V. Blavatnik, who froze contributions in 2023 amid outcry over campus antisemitism, as the school faces steep federal funding cuts, its dean announced Thursday.
Harvard Pays $90K to Trump-Linked Lobbying Firm in Second Quarter of 2025
Harvard paid lobbying firm Ballard Partners $90,000 in the second quarter of 2025 as the University broadened its federal advocacy to include direct engagement with the White House, according to a disclosure filed Tuesday.
DOGE Instructions and a White House Deadline: How the Government Canceled Harvard’s Grants
More than 2,000 pages of court documents present a new window into the government’s process for terminating research grants to Harvard — and show that the Department of Government Efficiency helped facilitate the operation.
Harvard Officials Say Federal Actions Could Cost the University $1 Billion Annually
Harvard President Alan M. Garber ’76 warned Monday that the combined financial impact of sweeping federal policy changes — including research funding cuts and a sharp increase in the tax on endowment income — could cost the University up to $1 billion annually.
Trump Signs Spending Package Into Law, Imposing 8% Tax on Harvard’s Endowment Income
President Donald Trump signed into law a sweeping tax and spending package that significantly raises the federal excise tax on Harvard’s endowment income on Friday — a move that could cost the University more than $200 million a year.
Harvard Kennedy School To Lay Off Staff Amid Federal Funding Cuts, Endowment Tax Threats
The Harvard Kennedy School is laying off employees and implementing a slew of cost-cutting measures in response to “significant financial challenges” inflicted by the Trump administration, the school’s dean announced in an email to faculty and staff on Wednesday.
Stefanik Calls On SEC to Investigate Harvard’s $750 Million Bond Disclosure
Representative Elise M. Stefanik ’06 (R-N.Y.) alleged that Harvard should have told bondholders in an April 9 notice to expect financial fallout from defying the Trump administration’s demands. It is not clear that Harvard had already decided to reject the demands at the time of the bond offering.
Senate Finance Committee Proposal for 8% Endowment Tax Could Cost Harvard $200 Million Per Year
The Senate Finance Committee released proposed changes to the House’s tax and spending bill that would introduce an 8 percent tax on large endowments. Down from the 21 percent rate passed by the House, the proposal would still be a sixfold hike from the 1.4 percent Harvard currently pays.
Harvard Research Cuts Halt More Than 570 Subawards to Other Institutions, Including MGB Hospitals
Harvard will cease funding more than 570 subawards for research at affiliated institutions across 32 states after cuts to federal support, according to a University spokesperson.
Seeking Revenue and Reach, SEAS Sets Its Sights on Expanded Professional Education Programs
The School of Engineering and Applied Sciences aims to expand its professional education programs and increase the programs’ revenue by at least one million dollars by 2030.
After a Semester of Catastrophic Federal Cuts, Researchers at Harvard Are in a ‘Survival State’
Across Harvard’s schools, researchers described a wave of destruction following sweeping terminations of federally funded grants. More than $2.7 billion in cuts have come as part of the Trump administration’s targeted pressure campaign against Harvard.
A Reluctant Fight: Inside Harvard’s War With Washington
At a campus now used to crisis, Garber’s words found their mark, not for what he said, but for what he seemed to represent: control, clarity, and a kind of reluctant bravery. After trying backchannel conversations with White House officials, a letter — apparently sent by mistake — with unprecedented demands forced Garber’s hand.
Strings Attached: How Harvard’s Wealthiest Alumni Are Reshaping University Giving
Led by Samuel W. Lessin ’05 and the 1636 Forum, Harvard donors are ditching unrestricted giving for targeted donations to shape the University’s future.
Trump Took Aim at Harvard. His Facts Sometimes Missed the Mark.
Donald Trump has spent the past two days using his presidential bully pulpit to light into Harvard.
Trump Administration Threatens To Pull Last of Harvard’s Federal Contracts
The Trump administration is prepared to direct federal agencies to cancel an estimated $100 million in remaining federal contracts with Harvard and seek alternative vendors, The New York Times reported Tuesday morning.
House Narrowly Passes GOP Tax Bill Targeting Harvard’s Endowment with 21 Percent Tax
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a sweeping Republican-backed tax and spending bill Thursday that would impose a 21 percent tax on Harvard’s endowment returns — the latest in a series of federal measures inflicting harsh financial penalties on the University.
Garber Establishes Presidential Priorities Fund, Calls on Alumni to Back Harvard in Fight with Trump
Harvard President Alan M. Garber ’76 unveiled a new Presidential Priorities Fund in a Monday email and called on alumni and donors to throw their financial and political support behind the University.
HHS Freezes $60 Million in Federal Grants to Harvard in Third Round of Trump Cuts
The United States Department of Health and Human Services cut an additional $60 million in multi-year grants to Harvard over allegations of campus antisemitism and racial discrimination on Monday.
Harvard FAS Announces New Funding Program for Research Impacted by Trump Cuts
Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Hopi E. Hoekstra announced a new program to fund senior and tenure-track FAS professors whose grants have been terminated by the Trump administration in a Friday message.
Scores of Researchers Receive Termination Notices After Federal Government Cuts Most Grants to Harvard
More than 100 Harvard researchers received termination notices for federally funded research projects on Thursday, as sweeping cuts to the majority of Harvard’s federal grants begin taking effect across the University’s labs.
Harvard Paid Claudine Gay $1.3 Million in 2023, Financial Disclosures Show
Former Harvard President Claudine Gay earned more than $1.3 million in 2023 — which spanned the end of her term as Faculty of Arts and Sciences dean and all six months of her short-lived presidency — according to the University’s annual tax disclosures.
HMC Backs Out of Big Tech, Increases Stakes in Microsoft and Booking at Beginning of 2025
Harvard Management Company pulled back on many of its recent tech investments during the first quarter of 2025 while significantly increasing its stakes in Microsoft and Booking Holdings in a major shakeup of its directly held public equities portfolio.
Trump Doubles Down on Threat to End Harvard’s Tax-Exempt Status
United States President Donald Trump wrote on Friday that he would pull Harvard’s tax-exempt status — his second social media vow to weaponize the Internal Revenue Service in the White House’s standoff with the University.