Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on the day's biggest business stories
Subscribe to Axios Closer for insights into the day’s business news and trends and why they matter
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Sign up for Axios NW Arkansas
Stay up-to-date on the most important and interesting stories affecting NW Arkansas, authored by local reporters
Campus North Residential Commons residential and dining facility at the University of Chicago. Photo: Raymond Boyd/Getty Images
Financier Steve Stevanovich, the subject of a fantastic investigation by the Chicago Maroon, sits on the storied board of trustees of the University of Chicago, alongside real billionaires like Ken Griffin and David Rubenstein.
Background: In 2006 he pledged $7 million to endow the the Stevanovich Center for Financial Mathematics; in 2014, he followed that up with another $10 million for something called the Stevanovich Institute on the Formation of Knowledge. And in 2017, he started talking about a "nine-figure" donation, saying that his funds were worth billions of dollars.
Why it matters: Stevanovich's funds weren't worth billions. The Maroon reveals that far from being a billionaire, Stevanovich hasn't even managed to meet his existing pledges.
- He's $2.8 million short on the $7 million pledge, he hasn't coughed up a penny of the $10 million pledge, and the university "has agreed not to accept payments" from him while he's embroiled in litigation surrounding his loans to a $3.65 billion Ponzi scheme. He's also being investigated by the SEC.
Between the lines: Stevanovich made $280 million lending money to convicted Ponzi schemer Thomas Petters; he got out, suspiciously, just before the scheme collapsed.
- He also contrived to turn $12 million of loans to a company called Groen Brothers Aviation into a total debt, after interest, of $150 million.
- That in turn allowed him to take control of the company and enter into a joint venture in Inner Mongolia which allegedly came with rights to 20 million tons of coal worth some $1 billion.
The SEC says that GBA only has one full-time employee. Its former employees are suing it for unpaid wages. But as recently as last year, Stevanovich was claiming that GBA (since renamed to Skyworks) was worth $1.7 billion, and that as soon as he could liquidate that investment, he could make good on all his pledges.