Philanthropy by the UK’s 150 richest to international universities jumps sixfold in 5 years

Courtesy of Eva Dang

Huge increase in non-UK university giving mirrors rise in UK-based ultra-HNWIs

Sunday Times 150 Rich List gives £750m to non-UK universities over past 5 years

18 September 2019, London --- Giving by Britain’s richest to non-UK universities has leapt by 595 percent in the past five years according to a study of university philanthropy. £292m was donated by Britain’s 150 richest to non-UK universities in 2018, up from £42m in 2014. The study is published by UniversityPhilanthropy.com and The Cape Partnership, a London-based public affairs and policy advisory firm.

According to the research 21 percent of the UK’s richest 150 – as identified by the Sunday Times 2019 Rich List – have made 197 donations to 86 non-UK universities in 22 countries since 2014. 59 percent of giving identified in the study went to 33 universities in the US. 


Anglo-Ukrainian billionaire Sir Len Blavatnik is Britain’s most generous university philanthropist having donated over £235m to seven non-UK universities in the past five years. This is in addition to past significant donations to Oxford University.

The single biggest beneficiary of UK-based philanthropy is Harvard University which has received £202m in donations since 2014. It is followed by Bergen University in Norway and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) which received £128m and £118m respectively.

Columbia University in New York is the most popular university for giving among the UK's richest. Five individuals have donated over £12m in the past five years. 


Commenting on the research Andrew Wigley, director of The Cape Partnership, said:

“UK philanthropy to non-UK universities is booming. Our research highlights a staggering rise in giving to overseas universities by Britain’s richest. It is not only the overall volume of giving which is rising markedly, but also the number of recipients. In 2014 22 universities received significant donations from the UK’s richest; by 2018 it was 43.

“The growth in giving to overseas universities appears to mirror the significant rise in accumulation of wealth by UK-based ultra High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs). In 2018 there were 149 billionaires on the Sunday Times Rich List compared to 104 in 2014, representing a 43 percent increase. This is a much bigger rise than the 18.5 percent growth in billionaires globally for the same period.

“Many of those among the top 150 are dual nationals or hold foreign passports which can be a factor in giving to a non-UK university”.

ENDS

For further information, please contact office@capepartnership.com

About UniversityPhilanthropy.com and The Cape Partnership

UniversityPhilanthropy.com is a dedicated research arm of The Cape Partnership, the London-based public affairs and policy advisory firm. Our policy professionals have a particular specialism in higher education. We work with a number of non-UK universities on building profile, representation and mapping funding opportunities in the UK.