UVA-F-1537

INVESTURE, LLC, AND SMITH COLLEGE

In January 2004, Alice Handy’s new investment advisory firm, Investure, LLC, was attempting to land its first client, Smith College, an elite liberal arts college located in
Northampton, Massachusetts with a $913 million endowment. Handy, fresh from her previous position as chief executive officer of the University of Virginia Investment Management
Company (UVIMCO), had 25 years of experience managing money and a track record of success. Over her career, Handy had directed increasing amounts of funds to a class of investments known as “alternative assets,” which included a range of investments other than publicly traded stocks and bonds. She had also developed a philosophy about their use and principles that she hoped would guide her new company to success. Mindful that in the investment world “past returns were no guarantee of future returns,” Handy knew she would face challenges from the unprecedented flow of funds into alternative assets and competition from other advisors. Building a business would also require time, energy, and persistence. All of these concerns, however, were in the back of her mind. In the forefront was Smith College’s endowment. She and her partner, Bruce Miller, were eager to review Smith’s current portfolio and prepare asset allocations that would position the endowment for future success.

Handy’s Career
Handy began her career at Travelers Insurance in 1970 after receiving a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Connecticut College for Women. At Travelers’ investment office,
Handy had worked in a one-person bond department in Hartford, Connecticut, managing billions of dollars, one of only a few women in a male-dominated field. The environment, according to
Handy, was “frontierlike” and provided an enormous learning opportunity.
In 1974, Handy moved to