Investor and UVA Leader Peter Grant Wins Darden’s Top Alumni Award

Peter M. Grant II (MBA ’86), a veteran investment banker and private equity investor who has played a central role in shaping the University of Virginia’s recent fundraising and governance efforts, has been named the 2026 recipient of the Charles C. Abbott Award from the Darden School of Business.

The award is the School’s highest recognition for alumni and is given to graduates whose leadership, service and philanthropy have had a sustained and consequential impact on the institution.

Grant, a founding partner of Anchormarck, has spent more than two decades in senior roles across investment banking and capital markets, including leadership positions at RBC Capital Markets and Dain Rauscher Wessels. Over the course of his career, he has advised companies on growth, capital strategy and transactions, building a reputation for steady judgment and long-term perspective.

At UVA, his influence has extended well beyond his professional work.

Grant has served on the Darden School Foundation Board of Trustees since 2015 and holds a range of leadership roles across the University, including past chair of the Alumni Association Board of Managers and current member of the Board of Visitors. His service has also included roles with the Jefferson Scholars Foundation and the College Foundation.

He is perhaps best known at UVA for serving as chair of the “Honor the Future” capital campaign, one of the most ambitious fundraising efforts in the institution’s history. In that role, Grant helped align alumni and donors around a shared set of priorities, contributing to a campaign that will shape the University’s academic and strategic direction for years to come.

His philanthropic giving has focused on long-term institutional strength, including support for faculty excellence through an endowed professorship at Darden, as well as broader investments across the University.

Grant, who earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia in 1978 and an MBA from Darden in 1986, has remained closely engaged with the University for more than four decades. Colleagues describe him as a consensus builder and steady presence in complex institutional efforts, often working behind the scenes to advance key initiatives.

“Those who’ve served alongside Peter — which I’ve had the opportunity to do for quite some time — know he always asks thoughtful questions, he listens carefully, and he leads in a way that elevates everyone around him,” said Cathy Friedman (MBA ’86), fellow member of the Darden School Foundation Board of Trustees.

The Abbott Award is named for Charles C. Abbott, Darden’s founding dean, and is intended to recognize alumni whose contributions reflect the School’s emphasis on leadership, integrity and service.

“If you’re here this weekend, it’s because you’re engaged, and this place did something for you, hopefully transformative. It did for me,” Grant told Reunion attendees. “This place continues to provide a platform and opportunity to do that for people. And my opportunity to serve on the board and in other ways here is hopefully my part in perpetuating that.”

Grant’s selection comes as Darden and the broader University look to build on a period of significant fundraising success and position themselves for the next phase of growth.

Peter Grant (MBA ’86) as a Second Year student at Darden.