University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, disclosed up to $145 million in alternative and absolute-return commitments from its $18 billion long-term endowment pool at its board of regents meeting Thursday.
The commitments were made in March and May to two existing fund managers. UM's investment office has authority to invest in new funds and strategies offered by existing managers, and direct investments that represent less than 1% of the endowment pool, without approval by the board.
The university committed up to $95 million to three funds managed by Eclipse Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage and early-growth physical industry technology startups, according to board documents.
A UM spokesman declined to provide further details about the Eclipse commitments, or any of the other disclosed commitments.
Also, the university committed $50 million to a fund managed by Graham Partners, a private equity firm that invests in middle-market industrial technology and advanced manufacturing companies headquartered in North America, according to board documents.
