Princeton Endowment CIO Andy Golden: Value-Added Partnerships & Divestment Considerations

Princeton Investment Company (PRINCO) CIO Andy Golden walks us through Princeton’s investment theses and manager selection processes, speaks to the importance of value add in partnerships, responds to divestment concerns, and addresses upcoming challenges in the finance and private equity industry.

One of the most successful investors and endowment directors today, Andy manages Princeton's $26 billion Endowment through a global network of over 75 investment firms. He has grown the endowment from $3 billion when he arrived more than 20 years ago, and achieved an annualized return of 11.6 percent in the past 10 years – making PRINCO one of the highest performing endowments in the world.

Andy became the third President of PRINCO in January 1995. He came to PRINCO from Duke Management Company where he was an Investment Director. He previously worked as a Senior Associate in the Investments Office at Yale University.

Andy holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Duke University and an M.P.P.M. from the Yale School of Management. He earned the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts. Andy served as a founding member of the Investors’ Committee of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets, and previously served as a member of the Board of Directors of the NAB Asset Corporation, a publicly-traded commercial loan workout specialist. He is a Trustee of the Princeton Area Community Foundation, Rita Allen Foundation and Rutgers Preparatory School.

Before shifting his focus to investing, Andy was a professional photographer. A stand-up guy, Andy enjoys paddle boarding, and hopes to someday return to the pro-am shark wrestling circuit. He wishes he had time to learn golf — he wouldn’t use it to learn golf, but he wishes he had the time.

Andy Golden