Coller Foundation seeds private equity institute

The Coller Institute of Private Equity will be established at the London Business School thanks in part to a “multi-million pound” commitment from the J Coller Foundation.

The programme will expand the business school’s private equity offerings via MBA electives and executive education courses, as well as debate and exchange forums.

“In the last 20 years private equity has done more than start, build and transform companies, it has created a new business ‘mindset’ and a new means of deploying capital. I strongly believe in private equity’s power to change companies and economies for the benefit of investors, customers, employees and society as a whole,” Jeremy Coller said in a statement.

Robin Buchanan, dean of London Business School, noted that the UK has more than 170 active private equity firms. “The tremendous growth in this market, a trend seen across the world as a whole, demands the attention of a top global business school,” he said.

The Coller Institute’s first chairman will be Eli Talmor, a professor who has led London Business School’s private equity activities for several years, and has overseen related academic research and case studies since 2004.

Prior to the Coller Foundation’s gift, the London Business School’s private equity programmes were supported by donations from Barclays Wealth, Coller Capital and Kirkland & Ellis. Barclays Wealth continues to be a donor to the Institute.

Coller, who founded secondaries firm Coller Capital in 1990, established his philanthropic foundation in 2002. The foundation makes donations to educational, medical research, community and environmental causes.

In April, UK-headquartered 3i also agreed to donate funds to further private equity education. The firm agreed to sponsor a professorship at German university Johann Wolfgang Goethe. 3i will provide the chair €200,000 per year for six years, with a review following the third year, to further research and education in the private equity field.