News

June 02, 2021

SJTU SAIF Workshop Welcomes Speech by Professor Chun Chang

On May 13, 2021, the SAIF Workshop was held for the second time in the auditorium of Tsung Dao LEE library at the Minhang Campus of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). Professor Chun Zhang (Executive Dean, Professor of Finance and Huifu Chair Professor at SAIF), was invited as a guest speaker to share his insights on the theme of “Excessively Loose Monetary and Fiscal Policies”. In his speech, Professor Chang analyzed the loosening trend of the international monetary and fiscal policy, which posed new challenges to both the conventional macro-finance theoretical framework and the practice of monetary and fiscal policies. He further pointed out that the model of high debt and low-interest rates had limited sustainability and would bring long-term problems, such as high inflation and deficit risks. Professor Chang then discussed why developed countries have adopted unconventional monetary and fiscal policies at this time. He emphasized that the unconventional monetary and fiscal policies could not solve the fundamental problem of development. On the contrary, it would bring a series of negative feedback loops such as increasing wealth disparity, and continuous increases for government deficit and debt ratios. These would trap countries in a vicious circle. In response to this problem, Professor Zhang put forward three approaches for China. First, we must encourage population growth, promote scientific and technological innovation, and accelerate institutional reforms. Second, we must narrow wealth disparity through precise poverty alleviation efforts. Third, we must identify the reason for the weakness in China's international finances and avoid structural risks brought about by high debt.

April 30, 2021

Professor Chao Zi published in the Journal of Financial Economics

Recently, the paper "Under-Diversification and Idiosyncratic Risk Externalities" by Professor Chao Zi, Assistant Professor of Finance at Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), was published by the top international finance journal Journal of Financial Economics (JFE). Sponsored by the School of Business at the University of Rochester, JFE is one of the Top 3 international financial journals in the world, along with Journal of Finance (JF) and Review of Financial Studies (RFS). It's a peer-reviewed academic journal covering both theoretical and empirical types of research within financial economics. The paper was co-authored by Professor Chao Zi, together with Dejanir Silva (Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and Felipe S. Iachan (Professor at the EPGE Finance School in Brazil). It focuses on the topic of "Under-Diversification and Idiosyncratic Risk Externalities" and yields targeted solutions. By constructing a macro-financial model, the authors found that idiosyncratic uncertainty did cause underinvestment and excessive aggregate risk-taking, which had a significant impact upon welfare. They point out that optimal allocation could be implemented through financial regulation using a tax benefit on debt and risk-weighted capital requirements on financial intermediaries.

April 29, 2021

The 1st “Yangtze River Finance” Workshop at SAIF Inaugurated

On April 21, 2021, the first “Yangtze River Finance” workshop at SAIF was inaugurated in the Yangtze River New Financial Demonstration District. It was jointly sponsored by Nanjing Jiangbei New District and the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). Nearly 100 staff from Jiangbei New District attended the conference. Qun Luo, Deputy Secretary of the Party Work Committee of Jiangbei New District, delivered a speech at the event on behalf of Jiangbei New District. He said that under the new development pattern of "Domestic and International Dual Circulation", Jiangbei New District should seize upon development opportunities to vigorously promote the financial industry with joint efforts made by relevant departments and entrepreneurs. He also thanked SJTU for its care and support for the Jiangbei New District of Nanjing. Professor Qigui Zhu (Secretary of the CPC SAIF Committee) delivered a speech on the theme of the "Macro-economic Situation in the Post-epidemic Era" from six aspects. These include: the macro-economic analysis system, the construction of the new development pattern, the complexity of the global economy, the deployment of the government's economic work, the analysis and judgment of the economic situation, and the thinking behind high-quality development.

April 28, 2021

Donor Appreciation Ceremony Held at SAIF

On April 17, 2021, an appreciation ceremony for the 3rd anniversary of the establishment of the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) Donation Wall was held at the Xuhui Campus at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). Professor Guangshao Tu (Adjunct Professor at SJTU and Executive Director at SAIF) and Professor Chun Chang (Executive Dean, Professor of Finance and Huifu Chair Professor at SAIF) delivered welcome speeches. At the beginning of the ceremony, Professor Jie Pan (Vice Dean at SAIF) introduced the history of the SAIF Donation Wall to the donors and alumni. In April 2018, in recognition of the contributions to the development of SAIF made by donors, the SAIF Donor Wall was officially established in the south hall at SAIF at Xuhui Campus. At present, 100 individuals, 14 classes, and 19 enterprises have been listed on the wall. Many of them have made multiple donations, which fully reflects the SAIF donation culture — "Be thankful for mutual benefits". In April 2019, SAIF ran a special donation program called "Step By Step" to celebrate its 10th anniversary of establishment. Professor Chang said in his speech that SAIF donors demonstrate the "Gratitude"spirit of both SJTU and the International Business School, which is one of the most precious assets of SAIF since its establishment twelve years ago. He hoped that with the spirit of SJTU and the power of SAIF, donors and SAIF would continue to be of benefit to each other. As a representative donor of the "Step By Step”program, Professor Tu said that the development of SAIF was inseparable from the care and support of all kinds of shareholders, with special recognition being given to the donors. Through the program, Professor Tu jointly established the "SAIF Qinglan Fund" with several professors. He hoped that these programs and funds would promote young scholars to collaborate in their efforts with teaching and research to build SAIF into a world-class financial school.

April 20, 2021

CAFR-FinVolution Joint Research Laboratory to be Assembled

On April 15th, 2021, CAFR-FinVolution Joint Research Laboratory at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), which was donated by FinVolution Technology, was officially unveiled at the FinVolution Partner Conference with the theme of "FinVolution: New Business Model of Future". Professor Guangshao Tu, Adjunct Professor at SJTU and Executive Director of Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF), delivered a speech at the conference. The launch of the CAFR-FinVolution Joint Research Laboratory represents the recognition and ardent expectation of the industry for SAIF's academic achievement. It will also greatly support SAIF's research and practice in the field of digital finance. SAIF will continue to forge ahead with determination, give back to society with outstanding research, and make unremitting contributions to the construction of Shanghai as an international financial center.

March 20, 2021

Delivering Financial Theories and Ideas: the 1st SAIF Workshop Inaugurated

On March 11th, 2021, the inaugural SAIF Workshop was launched in the auditorium of Tsung Dao LEE library at the Minhang Campus of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). Professor Tan Wang, Professor of Finance and MF Program Academic Director at Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) at SJTU, was invited as a guest speaker to share his insights on the theme of "Investment Overview". Nearly 150 students attended the event, along with Professor Hong Yan, Professor of Finance and Deputy Dean for Faculty and Research at SAIF. SAIF Workshop is a series of academic lectures on finance, designed for SJTU faculty and students and built on SJTU’s Master Forum. In each session, a professor at SAIF will be invited to interpret relevant field knowledge, analyze macro financial landscapes, and explore financial development models, business strategies or market trends. In this session, Professor Wang reviewed the evolution of classic investment philosophy. He introduced the key concepts of investment around three key words of value, risk, and market effectiveness. In addition, Professor Wang also discussed several portfolio theories aimed at risk diversification and explained to the audience how to "not put eggs in the same basket", from an academic point of view. Furthermore, he shared his thoughts on emerging concepts such as ESG investment and financial empowerment of the real economy. He believed that today's finance not only seeks higher returns and risk diversification, but also takes into account social responsibility. It is hoped that the workshop would bring some inspiration to the audience on their future asset allocation and to assist their understanding for a number of issues, from the perspectives of both finance and dynamics.

March 16, 2021

SAIF and WEF Jointly Release White Paper on China's FinTech industry

On the afternoon of March 11th, 2021, the white paper "Embracing the Challenge at the Crossroad: A New Chapter in China's FinTech Industry" was jointly released by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). The white paper, authored by Professor Jie Hu, Professor of Practice at SAIF, reviews China's FinTech journey in three stages. It explores three innovative drivers behind the evolution, discusses the current hot topics in the domain, puts forward the challenges faced by the industry and regulators alike, and inspires readers to drill down into the key issues.

March 10, 2021

Professor Zhan Jiang Awarded March 8 Red-Banner Pacesetter by SJTU

On March 8th, 2021, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) held the Commemoration of the 111th Anniversary of International Women's Day and the Awarding Ceremony of Advanced Individuals at Minhang Campus. Forty female employees, including Professor Jiang Zhan, won the SJTU honorary title of March 8 Red-Banner Pacesetter for 2019-2020. Professor Zhan Jiang joined SAIF in July 2011 and is one of the first full-time professors at SAIF. She has made outstanding contributions to SAIF's development in teaching, research, and management.

March 01, 2021

Professor Hong Yan Awarded Key 2020 Grant from Shanghai Finance Society

Recently, the Shanghai Finance Society announced the winners of Key Grant Awards in 2020. The project “Research on the Development of Offshore Center at Lingang New Area of Shanghai Free Trade Zone”, led by Professor Hong Yan (Deputy Dean for Faculty and Research, and Professor of Finance at the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance), won the 2nd Prize of Key Grant Award in 2020. This demonstrates the strength of SAIF faculty in policy studies and applications, as well as SAIF’s significant role as a think tank in the construction of Shanghai as an International Financial Center. The Shanghai Finance Society solicits grant applications from its members every year in order to expand its functions as a think tank and platform of academic exchange, and to encourage the members to carry out targeted and practical research on finance. In 2020, a total of 56 applications were submitted and 36 grants were awarded, including three grants from SAIF. Based on expert review and the intellectual property status of the grants, the Society selected a total of 18 winners, including five 2nd Prizes (with the 1st Prize vacant), eight 3rd Prizes, and five Excellent Prizes. The research group led by Professor Yan targeted the offshore center planning of the Lingang New Area in Shanghai. In view of the fact that full currency convertibility and capital account opening are unavailable in China at the moment, it is suggested that the offshore financial market should separate its domestic and international operations. However, given the role of China’s offshore market in providing overseas funding to Chinese businesses, it is also important to maintain appropriate exchange channels under the framework of domestic and international separation. In addition to development direction and functional deployment at the macro level, the research group led by Professor Yan also proposed six measures for the specific construction of the offshore RMB center at Lingang New Area: 1) To drive RMB asset pooling and create multi-level asset pooling of RMB-denominated stocks, bonds and derivatives; 2) To improve the offshore financial market policy system; 3) To regulate the offshore financial market management system; 4) To take measures to promote the development of offshore services; 5) To strengthen the construction of financial infrastructure; and, 6) To build a risk management system and linked controls suitable for both onshore and offshore markets.

February 26, 2021

Professor Jun Li’s Research Published in The Review of Financial Studies

Recently, The Review of Financial Studies, a world-class journal, published “The Collateralizability Premium”. It was co-authored by Professor Jun Li, Assistant Professor at Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) in collaboration with: Hengjie Ai of the Carlson Business School of University of Minnesota, Kai Li of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and Christian Schlag of Frankfurt University. The Review of Financial Studies (RFS) is one of the Top 3 international financial journals in the world, published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Society for Financial Studies. The paper was inspired by literature review on financial friction. After the financial crisis, there were a large number of papers and models about financial friction in macroeconomic literature, but literature focusing on the impact of financial friction on cross-sectional stock returns was limited, especially on collateral-back lending. Therefore, Professor Li and his collaborators focused upon the friction of collateral-back lending in order to seek out the connection between collateralizability premium and company characteristics.