If stocks are the roller coasters of the investing world — exciting and unpredictable — then bonds are the Ferris wheel — steadier and more reliable. Any solid investor will tell you that having a mix of both is a strong pathway toward financial success.

For nearly two decades, the Student Managed Investment Fund (SMIF) at the Terry College of Business has offered finance students the opportunity to steer the twists and turns of an active investment stock portfolio. But now, thanks to the financial gifts of two donors, the Terry College has a new learning attraction for students to ride.

Starting this fall, the Arch Bond Fund joins the existing Athena Stock Fund in SMIF’s financial portfolio. An initial investment of $250,000 from leadership at Bay Point Advisors, paired with a subsequent $1 million investment over five years from Angel Oak Capital Advisors, gives the 33 students in the initial Arch Bond Fund cohort nearly $500,000 to manage a real bond portfolio. They join the 55 Terry students in the Athena Stock Fund who oversee a portfolio of $3.9 million across 11 different sectors represented by 40 individual stock holdings.

“Bay Point is very excited to be involved with the newly formed Arch Fund,” said Charles Andros (BBA ’95), president and managing partner at Bay Point Advisors. “It is our dream to educate, grow and retain finance talent in Georgia. We encourage other finance leaders to get involved.”

“We are excited to partner with the University of Georgia on the Terry College Arch Fund,” said Michael Fierman, managing partner and co-CEO at Angel Oak Capital Advisors. “We feel the Arch Fund is quite unique in the academic world since it gives students the opportunity to invest in fixed income, helping provide access to the bond markets near the onset of their careers.”

The Arch Bond Fund was born when Andros met with former Terry College dean and now University of Georgia provost Ben Ayers to explore the feasibility of adding a bond component to the existing SMIF program. Ayers reached out to Johannes Kohler, senior lecturer in the Department of Finance and SMIF faculty advisor, who affirmed the concept’s viability, noting strong student interest and academic value.

“It was definitely a good time to start something like this,” said Kohler, who came to Terry in 2018 after serving as managing director in Morgan Stanley’s equity capital markets division. “We have had great interest from the students who want to be involved, and it’s going to open up even more opportunities for our students for internships and future jobs.”

Three Terry students make up the executive leadership committee in the fund’s inaugural years. Sharing the role of co-president are Patrick Ingalls, a finance major and Institute for Leadership Advancement Fellow who spent the previous summer as an analyst at Bay Point Advisors, and double finance/accounting major David Giardi, who finished an investment banking internship at Canaccord Genuity. The role of portfolio manager will be occupied by Leon Cohen, a double finance/political science major who interned with Goldman Sachs this summer.

Bay Point and Angel Oak have long and meaningful relationships with UGA and the Terry College. Andros serves on the UGA Parents Leadership Council, and Bay Point is a sponsor of Terry’s annual Alumni Awards and Gala. Fierman has served on the Terry Dean’s Advisory Council and is a member of the Terry Shareholders’ Society. With his wife, he created the Michael and Caroline Fierman Professorship in Public and International Affairs. Angel Oak also sponsors Terry’s Alumni Awards and Gala.

Moving forward, SMIF students in the Arch Bond Fund will:

• Manage a live portfolio, learning directly through security selection, sector rotation and yield curve positioning

• Develop career-ready skills in credit research, portfolio analytics and risk mitigation

• Gain competitive access to high-profile internships and full-time roles in fixed income, asset management and financial services

An Arch Bond Fund Advisory Board, comprised of senior-level professionals and investment executives, will provide insight, mentorship and strategic direction to ensure student managers develop an understanding of credit analysis, risk management and portfolio construction.

“The fixed income world is vast, from Treasury bonds to corporate credit, to more complex areas such as asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities, and we are thrilled to be working closely with the next generation of aspiring bond market professionals,” Fierman said.