Former Google board member and Silicon Valley venture capitalist Michael Moritz has given Oxford University its biggest cash donation ever, setting up a brand-new scholarship fund to benefit the institution's poorest students.
Moritz, no stranger to a spot of philanthropy, made his money by investing in some of the most successful tech companies in the world - including Google, Yahoo, PayPal and LikedIn.
It was the investment in Google, however, that paid off the most. When he put money into the search giant's IPO in 2004 it made him one of the richest men in Wales... His current net worth is around £1.1 billion ($1.8 billion).
All about scholarships
Moritz, a former student of Oxford University, along with his wife Harriet Heyman, have donated £75 million – this is to be the basis of an eventual £300 million scholarship fund.
This money is being put to good use, cutting the current £9,000 tuition fee by over half for poorer students. Because of the money, students who qualify will pay £3,500 a year instead of the full whack and they will also get a £5,500 bursary.
The donation is said to be the biggest ever given to a European university.
Speaking about the donation, Moritz said: "My father was plucked as a teenager from Nazi Germany and was able to attend a very good school... entirely on scholarship. And went on, entirely thanks to scholarships, to study at Oxford."
Via BBC
