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University of Southern California: endowment and investment office
University of Southern California reports USD 9.03 billion in nacubo respondent endowment value for FY2025 survey reporting date. Balance source
USC's financial report on endowed funds gives a market value of $9.03 billion. The report presents returns against a stock-and-bond benchmark and an inflation-based objective. It also explains that each endowed gift purchases shares in the endowment fund. The survey series preserves the more precise workbook totals. Official report
Key facts
- Reported value
- USD 9.03 billion
- As of
- FY2025 survey reporting date
- Portfolio
- Endowment
- Investment office
- USC Investment Office
Endowment size and reporting scope
The survey identifies the respondent as University of Southern California. Its investment report uses the portfolio name Endowment. The balance history follows the survey respondent, while performance follows the named portfolio. Endowed gifts may carry individual purposes even when they are invested together. The investment office can pool those funds for management and still account for each beneficiary separately. A change in the endowment balance includes gifts, appropriations and transfers alongside gains and losses on investments. Official report
| Fiscal year | Survey endowment, USD millions |
|---|---|
| FY2016 | 4,608.7 |
| FY2017 | 5,128.5 |
| FY2018 | 5,544.3 |
| FY2019 | 5,732.1 |
| FY2020 | 5,914.4 |
| FY2021 | 8,008.4 |
| FY2022 | 7,319.1 |
| FY2023 | 7,463.1 |
| FY2024 | 8,145.1 |
| FY2025 | 9,028.4 |
Across the reported FY2016 to FY2025 observations, the survey balance changed by USD 4,419.7 million (95.9%). This is balance growth; it includes the effect of new capital and distributions. NACUBO historical values FY2025 respondent table
Investment returns
| Portfolio | Period end | Horizon | Reported return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Endowment | June 30, 2025 | 1 year | 14% |
| Endowment | June 30, 2025 | 5 years, annualized | 11.9% |
| Endowment | June 30, 2025 | 10 years, annualized | 8.6% |
The 1-year result is 14%, while the 10-year result is 8.6% annually. The trailing periods share the same end date and overlap; their percentages are not added together. A long-term annualized return describes compound growth over the full period. The year-end asset balance also reflects money entering or leaving the portfolio. Return series
Spending policy and payout
The report says the payout rate is typically between 4% and 6% of average market value over the prior twelve quarters. The Finance and Campus Planning Committee sets it each year. This averaging basis helps explain why payout does not move directly with the latest closing portfolio value. Spending disclosure
A distribution is money made available for the fund's designated use. A policy rate uses the averaging base defined by the institution. Dividing the distribution by the latest closing balance would create another measure, so the published formula and the reported dollar amount retain their own labels. Distribution basis
Governance and investment office
The Investment Office manages endowment assets with oversight from the Board of Trustees' Investment Committee. The committee sets the asset allocation policy. The report distinguishes that policy from the portfolio's actual allocation. Investment governance
Federal excise tax on investment income
Public Law 119-21 changed IRC 4968 for tax years beginning after December 31, 2025. An applicable institution must have at least 3,000 tuition-paying students in the preceding tax year, with more than half located in the United States. Its student-adjusted endowment must be at least $500,000. The rate is 1.4% from $500,000 through $750,000 per student, 4% above $750,000 through $2 million, and 8% above $2 million. Enacted law, Section 70415
The tax applies to net investment income. Student-adjusted endowment uses the prior year's fair value of assets other than those used directly for exempt purposes, with statutory student-count and related-organization rules. Dividing the headline endowment by a fall enrollment number can give a different result. A rate on investment income also differs from a spending-policy percentage applied to average assets.
FY2025 size-band comparison
The FY2025 NACUBO respondent value of USD 9,028.4 million places this reporting entity in the Over $5B band. The published group contains 30 respondents. Its average annualized five-year return was 11.4%, its ten-year average was 8.9%, and its average effective spending rate was 5.0%. These are survey averages for FY2025. Respondent counts Average net returns Spending-rate table
| NCSE measure | FY2025 average |
|---|---|
| One-year net return | 11.8% |
| Five-year annualized net return | 11.4% |
| Ten-year annualized net return | 8.9% |
| Effective spending rate | 5.0% |
NCSE returns are net of external management fees and expenses for periods ended June 30, 2025. A portfolio reported on another cost convention or fiscal-year end describes a different result. Survey allocation definitions
Public records and reporting dates
The official investment report supplies the portfolio figures and measurement dates on this page. The institution or related reporting entity also has a public nonprofit filing record. Tax-return assets and expenses cover that legal filer and can be broader than its endowment. Nonprofit filing record
Sources
- https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2025-NCSE-Endowment-Market-Values-for-US-and-Canadian-Institutions-FINAL.xlsx
- https://giving.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/USC-Endowment-Brochure.pdf
- https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/research/Final-Endowment-Market-Values--2023-to-1974-Revised.xlsx
- https://www.congress.gov/119/plaws/publ21/PLAW-119publ21.pdf
- https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2025-NCSE-Public-Tables--Number-of-NCSE-Participants-FINAL.pdf
- https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2025-NCSE-Public-Tables--10-Year-Returns-by-Size-and-Type-FINAL.pdf
- https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2025-NCSE-Public-Tables--Spending-Rates-FINAL.pdf
- https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2025-NCSE-Public-Tables--Summary-Asset-Allocations-FINAL.pdf
- https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/951642394
- https://endowments.com/
- https://familyoffices.com/
Related profiles
- Dartmouth College (USD 10.00 billion)
- Rice University (USD 8.50 billion)
- Brown University (USD 9.50 billion)
- New York University (USD 7.44 billion)
- Oxford University Endowment Management (GBP 6.70 billion)
- The Ohio State University (USD 9.70 billion)
