The University of Pennsylvania reported a 12.2 percent return on its endowment for fiscal 2025, bringing the total value to $24.8 billion, writes Ryan Mulligan for the Philadelphia Business Journal.

The $2.5 billion year-over-year increase marks Penn’s strongest endowment growth since fiscal 2021, when its value surged by nearly $6 billion in the wake of the pandemic. This growth comes amid significant uncertainty over federal funding for higher education, a looming endowment excise tax, and renewed scrutiny of the university by the Trump administration.

“This year’s 12.2 percent investment return reflects the strength of our long-term, diversified strategy, helping the endowment keep pace with inflation even after significant spending distributions,” said a spokesperson for Penn’s Division of Finance.

The spokesperson added that the increased tax rate on net investment income that goes into effects in 2026 will have a big impact impact on Penn’s financial resources.

At the close of fiscal 2024, Penn held the seventh-largest endowment in the nation at $22.35 billion. Growth has been modest since the 38 percent surge between fiscal 2020 and 2021, with the endowment seeing gains of just one percent in 2022 and 1.3 percent in 2023 before achieving a 7.1 percent gain in 2024.

Read more about the University of Pennsylvania and its endowment in the Philadelphia Business Journal.

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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on PHILADELPHIA.Today in November 2025.