Mark W. Yusko (born 1963) is an American investor, hedge fund manager, and investment executive. He is the founder, chief investment officer and managing director of Morgan Creek Capital Management, an investment management firm that advises pension funds, endowments and wealthy individuals.

Early life and education Yusko was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in biology and chemistry and received an MBA in accounting and finance from the University of Chicago in 1987.

Investment career After completing his MBA, Yusko worked as a fixed-income portfolio manager at MMI Companies in Chicago and later joined Disciplined Investment Advisors, a value-oriented equity management firm in Evanston, Illinois.

From 1993 to 1998, he was a Senior Investment Director at the University of Notre Dame Investment Office. Yusko left Notre Dame in 1998 to head the endowment office at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. From 1998 to 2004, Yusko was founder and chief executive of the UNC Management Company. Yusko left UNC to found Morgan Creek Capital Management in 2004.

In 2004, Morgan Creek Capital Management, LLC partnered with Salient Partners LP to start The Endowment Fund. After reaching about $3.5 billion in assets, Yusko served as chief investment officer for the Fund until January 2013, when Yusko was removed for poor fund performance."Yusko Out as Investment Chief at Endowment Fund" by Juliet Chung, Wall Street Journal, January 22, 2013 Large redemptions by investors prompted The Endowment Fund in October 2012 to announce that investor withdrawals would be limited. In 2014, The Endowment Fund announced that investors could withdraw from the fund, but at significant discounts.

Yusko is a frequent commentator on the alternative investment industry and has appeared on CNBC, Bloomberg TV, Fox Business, and other major networks as well as in newspapers including the New York Times and Wall Street Journal."Most Fund of Funds Don't Add Value: Morgan Creek CEO." CNBC. Aired July 14, 2011"Morgan Creek's Yusko Seeks 'Protege' Fund Managers." Bloomberg TV. Aired September 20, 2012"Federal crypto regulation would 'force' jobs, development outside US: Market expert." Fox Business. Aired August 11, 2021"Buyout Pros Contemplate An Industry ‘Under The Glare’ During Romney Campaign," by Michael Wursthorn, Wall Street Journal. January 25, 2012"Top Hedge Fund Managers Earn Over $240 Million," by Jenny Anderson and Julie Creswell. New York Times. April 24, 2007. He is a proponent of the Endowment Model of investing, which favors diversified strategies by asset class and within each asset class in both public and private markets."Four Ways to Increase Pension Returns." CNBC. Aired June 22, 2012

Philanthropy The Morgan Creek Foundation: The Morgan Creek Foundation was established in 2005 and receives a portion of the profits of Morgan Creek Capital Management each year. The Foundation awards grants to education-focused, community-based, non-profit organizations."Stealth funder focuses on education" in Philanthropy Journal. June 30, 2010. In 2011, the Foundation received the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce's "Non-Profit of the Year" award."Chamber Names Top Local Businesses"

The Hesburgh-Yusko Scholars Program: In 2009, Yusko and his wife, Stacey, founded The Hesburgh-Yusko Scholars Program, a four-year, merit-based scholarship and leadership development program, with a $35 million gift to the University of Notre Dame. The Yuskos’ benefaction was the third-largest gift in the University’s history and was substantial enough to land them on the Slate 60 list of the largest American charitable contributions of 2009."Alumni couple creates scholars program with $35 million gift to Notre Dame" from ND Newswire. August 27, 2009. The Program gave 25 scholarship awards in Spring 2010 and 26 awards in Spring 2011."The Hesburgh-Yusko Scholars Program Class of 2014.""The Hesburgh-Yusko Scholars Program Class of 2015."

Yusko has also served on the boards of several North Carolina–based non-profits, including Carolina Meadows, a non-profit retirement community in Chapel Hill; MCNC, a technology and economic-development organization in the Research Triangle Park; and the Weaver Foundation, in Greensboro."The Weaver Foundation Directors and Officers."

In 2018, Morgan Creek expanded its activities in digital assets through Morgan Creek Digital. That year, Morgan Creek Digital partnered with Bitwise Asset Management to launch the Digital Asset Index Fund, which was designed to provide institutional investors with exposure to cryptocurrencies.

See also List of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill people List of University of Notre Dame people List of University of Chicago people

References

Further reading Burton, Katherine (2010). “Mark Yusko: What it Takes to Be the Best” in Hedge Hunters: Hedge Fund Masters on the Rewards, the Risk, and the Reckoning. Kochard, Lawrence and Cathleen Ritterieser (2008). “Invest without Emotion, Act with Conviction” in Foundation and Endowment Investing.

External links Mark Yusko on CNBC Video from CNBC - July 14, 2011 Mark Yusko: The Endowment Model Isn't Broken Video from Opalesque - May 19, 2010 Yusko on Endowment Investing Video from Fox Business News - December 22, 2009 Analysis and Discussion with Mark Yusko of Morgan Creek Capital Management Video from Bloomberg News - April 17, 2009 The Gospel According to Mark Yusko From Institutional Investor - August 2004