David Swensen

Yale endowment; "Yale Model" — illiquidity premium + alt-heavy allocation

David Swensen served as Chief Investment Officer of Yale University's endowment from 1985 until his death in 2021. Under his stewardship, Yale's endowment grew from roughly $1 billion to over $40 billion. He codified his approach in 'Pioneering Portfolio Management', making the alt-heavy, illiquidity-premium framework standard doctrine for institutional allocators worldwide.