Charles “Charley” D. Ellis (born October 22, 1937) is an American investment consultant. In 1972, Ellis founded Greenwich Associates, an international strategy consulting firm focused on financial institutions. Ellis is known for his philosophy of
passive investing through
index funds, as detailed in his book ''Winning the Loser’s Game.''
Early life and education
Ellis was born in 1937 in
Roxbury, Boston, Massachusetts. Ellis’ father, Raymond W., served in the Navy during
World War II. Ellis went to the
Phillips Exeter Academy
(not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God)
, location = 20 Main Street
, city = Exeter, New Hampshire
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and then
Yale College
Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
where he received his BA in Art History in 1959. At Yale he was in
Timothy Dwight College and served as Chairman of
WYBC, the college’s student radio station. In 1963, Ellis graduated with distinction from
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...
, which Ellis credits with being “the transforming experience” in his early life. Ellis went to work for the
Rockefeller family office and began a Ph.D. program in Financial Economics at
New York University, which he would complete over the following years.
Early career
After a brief stint with
WGBH, Boston’s
public radio
Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...
station, and then serving in the Army, Ellis began work with the Rockefeller family investments office. In 1966, he joined
Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette
Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) was a U.S. investment bank founded by William H. Donaldson, Richard Jenrette, and Dan Lufkin in 1959. Its businesses included securities underwriting; sales and trading; investment and merchant banking; finan ...
. Through his experience there, he developed the concept for Greenwich Associates, which he founded in 1972. During his 30 years as Managing Partner, Greenwich Associates grew to serve the leading firms in over 130 financial markets around the world with their widely recognized proprietary research.
Investment strategy
In 1975, Ellis authored the article The Loser's Game" in the ''
Financial Analysts Journal''. The article went on to win the Graham & Dodd award in 1977, and in it Ellis argued:
The investment management business (it should be a profession but is not) is built upon a simple and basic belief: Professional money managers can beat the market. That premise appears to be false.
Instead, Ellis advocated a strategy of diversified low-cost index fund investing, and he expanded on this approach in his book ''Winning the Loser's Game''. Ellis went on to write sixteen books and dozens of articles on investing, including: "The Partnership", the story of Goldman Sachs, and "What It Takes", a study of great professional firms.
Teaching and university service
Ellis was appointed twice to the faculty of the
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...
in 1970 and 1974 and to the
Yale School of Management in 1986. At both Harvard and Yale, he taught advanced courses on investment management.
Ellis served as a successor trustee of Yale University from 1997 to 2008, where he chaired the university’s investment committee for nine years alongside Chief Investment Officer David Swensen. He received the Yale Medal in 2009 for his service to the University.
He has served on the board of directors of the Harvard Business School and received the school’s alumni award for lifelong service.
Public, civic and board service
Ellis served as chair of the board of the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts and is one of only twelve people recognized by the
CFA Institute
The CFA Institute is a global, not-for-profit professional organization that provides investment professionals with finance education. The institute aims to promote standards in ethics, education, and professional excellence in the global investme ...
for lifetime contributions to the investment profession. He has also served as a trustee of Phillips Exeter Academy and Eagle Hill School, and as an Overseer of the Stern Schools of Business at
New York University.
After stepping down from Greenwich Associates, Ellis served as a director or advisor to numerous organizations. He served as a director of the
Vanguard Group
The Vanguard Group, Inc. is an American registered investment advisor based in Malvern, Pennsylvania, with about $7 trillion in global assets under management, as of January 13, 2021. It is the largest provider of mutual funds and the second-l ...
from 2001 to 2009, and also as a trustee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. He was managing partner of The Partners of ’63, a pro bono partnership of Harvard Business School classmates and associates, which supported entrepreneurship in education. Internationally, Ellis has served as an advisor to the GIC of Singapore, as well as to the “future funds” of New Zealand and Australia.
He currently serves as chair of the Board of Directors of Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research as well as chair of the Board of Directors of Essentia Analytics. Additionally, he serves on the advisory boards of
WealthfrontRebalance The Water Company, GeoSynFuels, and IMDx. In addition, he has on the boards of the Long Wharf Theatre and a number of regional Connecticut organizations.
Personal life
Ellis is married to
Linda Koch Lorimer, Vice President of Global and Strategic Initiatives at Yale University and together they have four grown children.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Charles D.
1937 births
Living people
American male writers
Harvard Business School alumni
Harvard Business School faculty
Yale College alumni
Yale University faculty
American money managers