Soros boosts endowment of Hungarian institution by £115m

Hungarian-born billionaire philanthropist George Soros has boosted the endowment fund of the university he founded in Budapest by €170 million (£115 million).

The move to increase the Central European University's endowment fund to E400 million was announced in Budapest last month at the 14th annual graduation ceremony. A further E20 million was pledged for the university's business school.

The money - which will boost university investment income for its day-to-day running by about E20 million a year - follows a decision earlier this year by the Hungarian Government to give the CEU full local accreditation in addition to its existing status as a US university.

CEU students will now qualify as members of a European University and will be eligible to receive dual Hungarian and US degrees.

"CEU has a unique dual identity and can serve as a bridge across many divides," Mr Soros said during the graduation ceremony.

CEU's Budapest-based representative, Ildiko Moran, said the financial boost put the institution among the US's top 100 university endowments.

More than 5,500 students have graduated from CEU. Some 1,000 students from 60 different countries are currently enrolled.