Project makes stock earnings for charity

While Occupy protestors are equating the stock market with greed, a group of IU students is using investing for philanthropy purposes.

The Virtu Project, an organization founded in 2006 by students in the Liberal Arts and Management Program, creates and manages philanthropic investments to raise funds for the non-profit Timmy Global Health.

Through donors who pledge money as mock investments in the stock market, Virtu accrues donations to help medically under-served children in Third World countries.

“Most people see capitalism as full of greedy businessmen, but we want to show how you can use investing to support philanthropy,” said senior Andrew Morrow, president of Virtu.

In the last three years, Virtu raised more than $35,000. These donations were fueled by the pledge each donor makes to match the returns in his or her investment made in Virtu’s mock portfolio.

For example, if a donor were to pledge $10,000 and the fund yielded 10 percent, the donor would give $1,000 to the foundation.

Andrea Wolf, IU senior and investment director for Virtu, said she is impressed by Virtu’s ability to fund social entrepreneurship through business. 

“We will never have another time when we can take these types of risks with investing, learning about portfolios and being able to have the impact that we do,” she said.

Members of Virtu, ranging from sophomores to seniors, are LAMP students who have applied for the organization to receive hands-on experience in networking, investing and creative-problem solving.

Members start as associates who learn about Virtu’s operations. They become managers who do research and conduct presentations about Virtu’s investments. The final step is a Virtu partner, who teaches the Virtu curriculum to the associates.

Every Tuesday evening, Virtu members gather at the School of Informatics and Computing to discuss the stock market as they plan their investment strategy to raise funds for Timmy Global Health, formerly the Timmy Foundation, which works to expand access to health care.

At Virtu meetings, there are no briefcases or three-piece suits. But despite their college-student looks, the students’ conversations contain stock market jargon.

The junior managers give presentations about their stock portfolios in their assigned market sector. These reports help teach members about the companies they have invested in.

The reports focus on the performance, history and any major news that is effecting members’ investments.

Currently, the project has shares in 24 holdings ranging from Apple to Tempur-pedic International.

Discussions are also guided by weekly readings from “The Intelligent Investor” by Benjamin Graham, the same book that inspired business magnate Warren Buffett. It highlights the practice of investing with a sense of rationality and stability rather than with emotions.

From the book, Virtu members have learned that, as average investors, they will always win and lose. The losses, while unavoidable, shouldn’t deter them.

If they speculate, they are bound to lose. In their discussion, the group came to the consensus that because the market is always going up and down, being disciplined is what matters.

Their discipline about their responsibilities for Virtu is anchored by their close ties to Timmy Global Health, Morrow said.

Senior Brynne Underwood, the organization’s secretary, had the opportunity to travel to Guatemala with Timmy Global Health last year during spring break. There, she saw the impact Virtu’s returns made in helping the lives of people in need.

Underwood said she remembers talking with a mother and her two children, who were waiting for parasite medication treatment. When the mother questioned if they were all going to be able to get the medicine, Underwood was able to tell them.

Underwood said she remembers the mother looked like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

Some Virtu members have also taken a trip to Indianapolis to see Timmy Global Health headquarters. They had the chance to see the supplies that were purchased with the help of the money they raised.

While the majority of Virtu members said they don’t plan to work on Wall Street, their investment curiosity allows them to make philanthropic contributions on a larger level.
Underwood said her involvement in Virtu is her opportunity to “learn while doing good.”