Wellcome Trust announces 2013/14 annual results
Wellcome Trust and Wellcome Trust Finance plc. (a wholly owned subsidiary of Wellcome Trust) announce that they have each published their Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year to 30 September 2014 today.
The Wellcome Trust is pleased to report that our investment portfolio recorded a total return of 15.4 per cent for the year to 30 September 2014, equating to £2.5 billion on an investment portfolio value of £16.4 billion at the start of the year. Cash payments in support of our mission rose to £690 million and the investment base rose to £18.0 billion.
We have returned over £9 billion (81 per cent cumulative, 10.4 per cent annualised) in the six years since the start of the global financial crisis in September 2008, recording positive returns in each of these years. Returns have been 163 per cent cumulative (10.2 per cent annualised) over ten years and 645 per cent cumulative (10.6 per cent annualised) over 20 years. Since the inception of our investment portfolio in 1985, it has provided a total return averaging 14 per cent a year. We maintain a AAA/Aaa (stable) credit rating.
Depending on actual investment returns, we project that we shall be able to spend in excess of £4 billion on our charitable activities between 2014 and 2019, an increase of 23 per cent over the previous five-year period.
We have again enjoyed positive returns from each major element of the portfolio (public equities, private equities, venture capital, hedge funds and property) over one, three, five and ten years.
Sir William Castell, Chairman of the Trust, said: “I am once again very pleased to report strong investment performance numbers this year, building upon past investment decisions. This success has enabled us to make charitable payments that are now 45 per cent higher than in the year 2008 before the global financial crisis began.”
Danny Truell, CIO of the Trust, added: “Our internal investment team and external investment partners have again added significant value across the board, enabling us to perform better than global stock markets with considerably lower volatility. Prospective investment returns are now lower, but, with strength in breadth and depth across our investment team and the businesses and partnerships in which we invest, I am confident that we can continue to reinforce the Trust’s robust financial position.”