News Centre

University of Cambridge appoints Nick Cavalla of Man Global Strategies as Chief Investment Officer

27 November 2006

The University of Cambridge has appointed its first Chief Investment Officer. Nick Cavalla, an investment professional with particular expertise in the management of alternative investments, currently with Man Investments, will take up the newly created role in April 2007 and will be based in Cambridge.

The appointment follows the formation earlier this year of an Investment Board of experienced investment industry figures to oversee management of the University's endowment fund. Cavalla's experience will help the University develop an investment approach in line with global best practice, embracing all appropriate asset classes in order to diversify risk and achieve the best possible returns on its endowments and donations.

The University's central investments are currently valued at over £1.2 billion. In September 2005, Cambridge was the first UK university to announce a £1 billion fund-raising campaign, a collaboration between the University and its 31 Colleges. The campaign focuses strongly on the building of endowment funds.

Nick Cavalla is chief investment officer of Man Global Strategies (MGS), one of the three multi-manager alternative investment divisions within Man Investments. He is responsible for overseeing the teams that research alternative investment managers, their subsequent monitoring and portfolio allocation. Nick Cavalla will remain involved with MGS in an advisory capacity, as a member of its Investment Board.

Man Investments is the largest provider of hedge funds in the world, with over $58bn in assets under management. It is the asset management arm of Man Group plc, a London-based FTSE 100 company founded more than two centuries ago.

Previously Nick Cavalla was a director of the brokerage house GNI Limited and its investment management subsidiary. His earlier career included periods working for County NatWest Investment Management and Touche Ross, where he qualified as a chartered accountant. He is also a member of the Association of Corporate Treasurers.

The appointment of Nick Cavalla as Chief Investment Officer is a step in the process of building the first professional in-house investment office of any UK university. Cavalla and his team will work with the Investment Board to develop investment objectives and an appropriate investment strategy.

Michael Dobson, Chief Executive of Schroders plc and Chair of Cambridge University's Investment Board said: "This is a very good appointment for the University. The successful investment of Cambridge's Endowment Fund is vital in enabling the University to achieve its goals and means that the endowment and contributions to the campaign fund will be managed in line with best industry practice. We look forward to working with Nick. "

David Swensen, Chief Investment Officer at Yale and also a member of the University's Investment Board said: "Nick Cavalla's appointment positions the University of Cambridge to make significant progress on building its endowment. I fully expect this will be a highly successful move."

"Nick has done an exemplary job for MGS and Man, and we expect he will serve the University well in helping it achieve its investment goals," said Harvey McGrath, Chairman of Man Group. "We are also very pleased that he will remain with MGS in an advisory capacity."

Notes for Editors:

The current asset allocation and performance

Equities 70% (UK 45%, Overseas 25%), Property 15%, Bonds/cash 15%.

The endowment has performed well over the long-term, and its investment performance is comfortably within the top 15% of UK charity funds (over 10 years and 20 years). In y/e July 2006 it had a 15% total return.

Management of the securities and property portfolios carried out by fund managers (F&C and LaSalle respectively).

The value of investment assets Cambridge University and colleges

The total figure for "Cambridge" is currently around £4.1 billion, of which two-thirds belongs to the 31 colleges' endowments.

The main Cambridge University Endowment Fund and other investments, for which Nick Cavalla will be responsible, currently total £1.2 billion.

Liaison and co-operation arrangements between the colleges and the University are being developed in respect of investments.

Comparisons with other universities

June 2006: Harvard US$ 29.2 bn (£15bn); Yale US$18 bn (£9.5bn); MIT $8.4 bn (£4.4bn).

The members of the Investment Board are:

1. John Armitage co-founded London-based Egerton Capital Limited, a leading European equity hedge fund management firm, in May 1994. He joined Morgan Grenfell in 1981 and ran the firm's highly successful European Growth Trust from 1988 to 1994.

2. Damon Buffini is managing partner of Permira, the European private-equity firm. Under his leadership Permira has established itself as a leader among the 4,000 private-equity firms worldwide.

3. Michael Dobson Michael Dobson is the Chief Executive of Schroders plc, an independent fund management group with over £120 billion under management. From 1973 to 2000, he worked for Morgan Grenfell and Deutsche Bank. He was Chief Executive of Morgan Grenfell Group from 1989 to 1996. He was a member of the Board of Managing Directors of Deutsche Bank AG, responsible for investment banking and subsequently asset management, from 1996 until 2000.

4. Douglas McDougall has extensive experience in the fund management industry and is a former senior partner of Baillie Gifford & Co. He is chairman of The Law Debenture Corporation plc, Foreign & Colonial Eurotrust plc, The Independent Investment Trust plc, Pacific Horizon Investment Trust plc, and The Scottish Investment Trust PLC. He is a former chairman of IMRO, of the Association of Investment Trust Companies and of the Fund Managers' Association

5. Stewart Newton joined Ivory & Sime in 1968 where he was director and fund manager. In 1977, he founded Newton Investment Management. He retired from Newton Investment Management in April 2002 and was appointed a non-executive director of HSBC Holdings plc in 2002.

6. David Swensen is Chief Investment Officer of the Yale Endowment. He has produced consistently high returns over the last two decades. Yale's endowment returned an annualised 17.4% over the ten years to 30 June 2005, placing it in the top one per cent of US institutional funds. Prior to joining Yale in 1985, Mr Swensen spent six years on Wall Street - three years at Lehman Brothers as Senior Vice President responsible for the firm's swap activities and three years at Salomon Brothers as an Associate in Corporate Finance.

7. Alison Richard, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge attends Investment Board meetings ex officio.

About Man Investments

Man Investments, the Asset Management division of Man Group plc, is a global leader in the fast-growing alternative investments industry. It provides innovative products and tailor-made solutions to private and institutional investors. Through its core investment managers - AHL, Glenwood, Man Global Strategies and RMF - Man Investments has succeeded in developing leadership in hedge funds and has interests in other asset classes.

Established in 1983, Man Investments has launched over 450 products, many of them with leading financial institutions. It manages USD 58 billion and employs more than 1,300 people worldwide. Man Investments has key centres in London and Pfäffikon (Switzerland), and offices in Chicago, Hong Kong, the Middle East, Montevideo, Nassau, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto.

Further information on Man Investments can be found at www.maninvestments.com

About Man Group plc Man Group plc is a leading global provider of alternative investment products and solutions as well as one of the world's largest futures brokers. The group employs over 4,000 people in 16 countries, with key centres in London, Pfäffikon (Switzerland), Chicago and New York. Man Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EMG.L) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Further information on Man Group can be found at www.mangroupplc.com.

High quality image is available on request.

For more information, contact:

• Greg Hayman, Head of Communications

  Tim Holt, Deputy Head of Communications

  Tel: 01223 332300