Dima Leshchinskii

Dima Leshchinskii, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Finance department at Menlo College. He holds a Ph.D. from INSEAD (2000), an M.B.A. from the University of Utah (1995), and a B.S. in Applied Mathematics from Tomsk State University (Russia). His career includes academic research in physics and finance, teaching at international business schools, and consultancy in valuation for litigation and investment portfolios.

Research Focus: Dr. Leshchinskii specializes in entrepreneurial finance (encompassing venture capital and financial innovation) and behavioral finance. His work examines psychological factors in financial decision-making and emerging funding models for startups.

Publication Trends: Recent articles (2015–2024) explore diverse themes: fintech disruption (e.g., Banking-as-a-Service), educational outcomes in finance, corporate governance in India, earnings management, and behavioral biases in VC valuation. Methodologically, he emphasizes empirical analysis and cross-disciplinary applications.

Active Research Projects:

• Innovations in startup financing (lessons learned)
• Performance implications of NBA salary cap violations (with Sean Pradhan)
• ESG portfolio performance in the S&P 500 (with Sam Baker)
• Corporate impacts of environmental/gender diversity initiatives (with Manish Tewari and Faten Ben Bouheni)