Press release from the Nobel Foundation

The Nobel Foundation’s 2022 asset management and earnings

28 April 2023 View in Swedish

The market value of the Nobel Foundation’s total invested capital amount­ed to SEK 5,799 m (6,103) at the end of 2022. Excluding the value of the Foundation’s directly owned properties, investment capital amounted to SEK 5,515 m (5,720). This generated a return of -2.0 (+18.4) per cent during 2022. During the past five years, investment capital rose by 7.5 per cent annually. During the past ten years, investment capital rose by 9.3 per cent annually.

The Nobel Foundation is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the intentions of the will of Alfred Nobel are fulfilled. The main mission of the Foundation is to manage the assets left behind by Nobel, as well as the extensive intellectual property related to the Nobel Prize. 

The institutions that Alfred Nobel designated in his will to select laureates choose the Trustees of the Nobel Foundation. The most important task of the Trustees is to appoint the Nobel Foundation’s Board of Directors and to examine the Nobel Foundation’s financial statements. At the meeting of the Trustees on Friday, 28 April 2023, the Nobel Foundation’s 2022 financial statements were presented.

The objective of the Nobel Foundation’s investment activities is to achieve a sufficiently high return over time to maintain the financial base of the Nobel Prize and guarantee the independence of the work of the Prize Com­mittees in selecting the laureates. In addition, the Nobel Foundation aims to manage its assets in a way that considers long-term sustainable development and to otherwise follow good ethical principles in its investment activities. 

The Nobel Foundation continued its work with responsible investments, mainly via its asset managers. During 2022, the Nobel Foundation’s sustainability-related exclusions negatively affected the performance of its public equity portfolio. This was primarily related to Russia’s warfare in Ukraine − leading to record share prices for oil companies, which the Foundation has no exposure to.

Investment capital exposure was 53 (55) per cent equity funds, 9 (8) per cent property and infrastructure funds, 17 (16) per cent fixed income assets and cash, 22 (24) per cent alternative assets and 0 (-2) per cent accrued currency hedging gains.

Other information

For the Nobel Foundation’s guidelines concerning responsible investments

The Nobel Foundation’s Annual Report for 2022 and an Annual Review

Nobel Foundation

The Nobel Foundation is a private foundation established in 1900 on the basis of the will of Alfred Nobel and the founding statutes promulgated in connection with the will. Its primary purpose is to ensure that the intentions of the will of Alfred Nobel are fulfilled. The Foundation is responsible for ensuring that the assets made available for awarding the Nobel Prize are managed in such a way as to safeguard the economic base of the Prize in a long-term perspective and guarantee the independence of the prize-awarding institutions in their work of selecting Laureates. The Nobel Foundation is also entrusted with managing and carefully developing the trademarks and intangible assets that have been built up during the more than century-long history of the Nobel Prize.

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