University College is widely considered to be the oldest college in Oxford University, founded in the 13th century and attended by such luminaries as scientist Stephen Hawking, poet Percy Shelley and former US president Bill Clinton. It recently made history of a different kind, when it launched a £40m ($62.9m), 50-year bond with a coupon of just 3.1%, the lowest yielding university bond on record.
“We found the low level of rates compelling. It seemed like an exceptional opportunity, which would probably not recur. So we thought that if we were going to do it at all, then now would be the time,” says Frank Marshall, the estates bursar at the college.
