Farzad Saidi is a Professor of Financial Economics at the University of Bonn's Institute for Macroeconomics and Econometrics, where he has served as a Cluster Investigator since 2020. His research bridges theoretical and empirical finance with macroeconomic policy implications, focusing on banking systems, monetary transmission mechanisms, and corporate finance dynamics. Affiliated with one of Europe's leading economics departments, Saidi contributes to policy-relevant research through extensive collaborations with international scholars and institutions. His educational background includes an MSc in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics from the London School of Economics and a PhD in Economics from New York University (2013). Prior to his current position, he held faculty appointments at Boston University, Stockholm School of Economics, and the University of Cambridge. Saidi's research portfolio demonstrates exceptional breadth across financial economics. His work on banking examines how institutional structures affect credit allocation, with seminal contributions on negative interest rates, bank concentration, and regulatory forbearance. His pandemic-related research integrates epidemiological modeling with economic decision-making, revealing how social preferences shape health outcomes. In corporate finance, he investigates innovation disclosure's impact on financing costs and takeover dynamics. His labor-finance intersection research analyzes how monetary policy affects earnings inequality through credit channels. Analysis of his publication record reveals three dominant research trajectories: (1) The microfoundations of monetary policy transmission through heterogeneous bank balance sheets, (2) Financial stability implications of regulatory changes using quasi-experimental designs, and (3) Behavioral extensions to traditional finance models incorporating social preferences. His methodological approach consistently leverages granular administrative data and natural experiments to identify causal mechanisms. Jensen Prize for best paper in Journal of Financial Economics (2016) Saidi's advising activities encompass doctoral students and junior researchers across multiple institutions, though specific advisees aren't publicly listed. His work has attracted significant research funding, particularly for projects analyzing European Central Bank policies and pandemic economic responses using German administrative datasets. Current projects examine credit supply effects on labor markets and the interaction between financial and trade sanctions. As a core member of Bonn's financial stability research cluster, Saidi collaborates with economists across Germany and Europe. His work informs policy discussions through regular engagement with central banks and financial regulators, particularly regarding negative interest rate policies and banking regulation reforms.
