Trump’s Hit on Elite Colleges Roils Niche Corporate Bond Haven

The Trump administration is ratcheting up its attack on Harvard University and higher education institutions, threatening the safest segment of the US corporate bond market.

Harvard, which has more than $4 billion of taxable debt outstanding, and other prestigious schools make up the bulk of borrowers in the top-rated corporate bond index, joining Microsoft Corp. and Johnson & Johnson. While US colleges typically borrow in the tax-free municipal-bond market, the schools turned to the corporate space for quick and flexible cash as interest rates fell. With massive endowments and legacies that span centuries — their debt ...