(Kitco News) - An important shift has taken place in alternative assets as the world’s largest endowment fund has taken significant positions in gold and Bitcoin.
According to updated 13F filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Harvard Management Company (HMC) bought 333,000 shares of SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE: GLD), the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund (ETF). The position is valued at $101.5 million.
At the same time, the endowment fund—which, as of the end of 2024, had assets under management valued at $53.2 billion—also bought 1.906 million shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), valued at approximately $117 million.
This is the first time HMC has established positions in gold and Bitcoin. In its year-end report, HMC noted that it held only a 3% exposure to real assets, with less than 1% in natural resources.
An analysis of its equity holdings shows that gold and Bitcoin now represent a combined total of 15% of its publicly traded portfolio.
Harvard’s foray into alternative assets is a strong statement on how far gold and Bitcoin have come, as both are among the top-performing assets so far this year. This also represents a new avenue of investment demand.
In conversations with Kitco News, many public pension fund managers have expressed little interest in gold, as its value can be difficult to measure compared to equity markets. However, with gold’s nearly 30% rally through the first half of the year, sentiment has slowly been shifting; a growing number of fund managers have said the precious metal is creeping into more conversations.
Harvard’s investment in gold comes as global precious metals ETFs saw their largest inflows in the first half of the year since 2020. According to data from the World Gold Council, ETF gold holdings increased by 170 tonnes in the second quarter, adding to the 227 tonnes of inflows reported in the first quarter.
Beyond its notable positions in gold and Bitcoin ETFs, Harvard Management Company's latest 13F filing reveals a strong concentration in large-cap technology and AI-related equities. Its largest holding is Microsoft Corporation, with 623,300 shares—a 48% increase from the previous quarter.
Harvard also boosted its stake in Nvidia, acquiring 269,000 shares—a 30% increase—likely driven by the company's dominance in AI chip manufacturing and its central role in powering generative AI infrastructure.
Another significant shift includes a 10% reduction in Alphabet. The fund also trimmed its exposure to Meta Platforms by 67% and exited positions in Uber and Rubrik, indicating a strategic move away from certain high-growth tech names.
