Foundations have made slow progress toward greater transparency and diversity in their asset management, a study from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation finds. 

Based on a study of 35 foundations in the United States, the report, Knight Diversity of Asset Managers Research Series: Philanthropy (35 pages, PDF), found that, as a group, foundations showed greater transparency than in studies conducted in 2021 and 2020—but not by much. Diversity continues to be scarce, according to the study. While 15 of the foundations, representing more than $85 billion invested, would not disclose who manages their money, for those willing to disclose who manages their endowment funds, just over 18 percent of their endowments were invested with diverse-owned firms, up from just over 16 percent in 2020. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has the most money invested with diverse-owned firms, at $1.64 billion. 

“I have great admiration for leaders like the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, but in general, progress has been slow, and transparency is lacking,” said Knight Foundation president Alberto Ibargüen. “Large foundations and other mission-driven institutions hold enormous power to influence change through their investment decisions. We think transparency will help ensure that the people in the room making those decisions are diverse and represent the whole country.”

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