Yale built the private-heavy endowment model and still runs it: roughly two-thirds in private equity, real assets and hedge funds, under 15% in public stocks. In fiscal 2025 it earned 11.1% and grew to $44.1 billion, yet its private book, leveraged buyouts and real estate, lagged a strong public market. And Yale still sold up to $6 billion of private-equity stakes on the secondary market in 2025 to raise cash, the first time it had done so. The model did not change its mind about private assets. It ran short of liquidity.
Key numbers, and what they mean
11.1%
Yale’s FY2025 return, its best since 2021. Strong overall, but its private holdings, buyouts and real estate, lagged a rising public market.
$44.1B
Endowment value at June 30, 2025, after $4.5B of gains. It funds more than a third of Yale’s operating budget.
$2.1B
Paid to Yale’s operating budget in FY2025. That bill comes due whether or not funds return cash.
$6B
Private-equity stakes Yale put up for sale on the secondary market in 2025 to raise cash, its first-ever such sale.
Asset mix (approx. policy)
Private equity (VC + buyouts)~41%
Bonds & cash (liquidity)~20%
Absolute return~14%
Public equity (foreign + dom.)~14%
Real assets (RE + nat. res.)~11%
The read-through
From the report
Takeaway: how to apply it to a portfolio
Even in a strong 11.1% year, Yale sold private stakes on the secondary market to cover a fixed annual payout.
Match illiquid holdings to the cash you will actually need. Before committing to a fund, map your spending for the next 5 to 10 years and make sure liquid assets cover it without forced sales.
Fund distributions dried up industry-wide while private valuations stayed high, so private holdings drifted above their target weight.
Watch the denominator effect: when public markets fall or private marks lag, private weight climbs on its own. Set a ceiling and a plan to trim before you are forced to sell at a discount.
A quarter of the fund is in venture capital alone, the driver of its long-term outperformance.
Concentration builds both the returns and the risk. If one bet drives your results, size it so a multi-year drought there does not force your hand on everything else.
The Argus lensA secondary sale is only worth the NAV behind it, and the buyer is betting those marks are honest. Whether you are offered a secondary, a continuation fund, or a new commitment, we read the fund documents and test the marks against comparable deals so you know what you are actually buying.
Benchmark your deals in the Portal →
About the source
Yale’s fiscal-2025 endowment report, published October 2025, gives the year’s return, the endowment value, and the share of the budget it funds. The 2025 decision to sell up to $6B of private-equity stakes on the secondary market comes from trade-press reporting on the transaction.