William J. Ruane
Encyclopedia
William J. Ruane was a Wall Street
investment manager and philanthropist.
Ruane graduated from the University of Minnesota
in 1945 with a degree in electrical engineering
and from Harvard Business School
in 1949. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was on his way to Japan when World War II
ended. He met Warren Buffett
at an investment seminar with value investing
guru Benjamin Graham and he and Buffett became lifelong friends. Buffett advised associates to invest with Ruane after he had closed out his initial partnership as they both employed Graham's value investing techniques.
Ruane founded his own investment firm, Ruane Cunniff, with partner Rick Cunniff in 1970, and the same year they launched their flagship Sequoia Fund. Ruane's firm was renamed Ruane, Cunniff, and Goldfarb
in 2004, when Robert Goldfarb
became president. In 2008, the Sequoia Fund announced it would open its fund to new investors for the first time since 1982.
In 1992 he adopted a block in Harlem
, committed to make it a better place, renovating buildings and establishing clinics and community service programs. Ruane gave every child on the block a scholarship to a Catholic school
. He also funded programs at public schools and schools on Indian reservations, and contributed to mental health causes.
in Manhattan
, aged 79 (several weeks before his 80th birthday). He was survived by his wife, Joy, and their four children: Billy (1957-2010; a music promoter), Elizabeth, Thomas and Paige Ruane.
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
investment manager and philanthropist.
Ruane graduated from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
in 1945 with a degree in electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
and from Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...
in 1949. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was on his way to Japan when World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
ended. He met Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett
Warren Edward Buffett is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is widely regarded as one of the most successful investors in the world. Often introduced as "legendary investor, Warren Buffett", he is the primary shareholder, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is...
at an investment seminar with value investing
Value investing
Value investing is an investment paradigm that derives from the ideas on investment and speculation that Ben Graham and David Dodd began teaching at Columbia Business School in 1928 and subsequently developed in their 1934 text Security Analysis...
guru Benjamin Graham and he and Buffett became lifelong friends. Buffett advised associates to invest with Ruane after he had closed out his initial partnership as they both employed Graham's value investing techniques.
Ruane founded his own investment firm, Ruane Cunniff, with partner Rick Cunniff in 1970, and the same year they launched their flagship Sequoia Fund. Ruane's firm was renamed Ruane, Cunniff, and Goldfarb
Ruane, Cunniff, and Goldfarb
Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb based in New York City is the investment firm founded in 1969 by William J. Ruane and Richard T. Cunniff. The firm manages its trademark Sequoia Fund, which has one of the best long-term performance records on Wall Street. The firm manages over $14 billion in...
in 2004, when Robert Goldfarb
Robert Goldfarb
Robert Goldfarb serves as President and CEO of Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb, the value investing firm founded in 1970 by William J. Ruane and Rick Cunniff. Goldfarb is a disciple of Warren Buffett, the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Mr. Goldfarb's firm currently manages over $14 billion in assets. A...
became president. In 2008, the Sequoia Fund announced it would open its fund to new investors for the first time since 1982.
In 1992 he adopted a block in Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
, committed to make it a better place, renovating buildings and establishing clinics and community service programs. Ruane gave every child on the block a scholarship to a Catholic school
Catholic school
Catholic schools are maintained parochial schools or education ministries of the Catholic Church. the Church operates the world's largest non-governmental school system...
. He also funded programs at public schools and schools on Indian reservations, and contributed to mental health causes.
Death
He died at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer CenterMemorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center is a cancer treatment and research institution founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, aged 79 (several weeks before his 80th birthday). He was survived by his wife, Joy, and their four children: Billy (1957-2010; a music promoter), Elizabeth, Thomas and Paige Ruane.