Finance

Why do non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have the potential to disrupt the art market? This new investment phenomenon came to light when an animated GIF of Nyan Cat, which is a meme of a flying pop-tart cat, sold for more than $500,000 US Dollars. Shortly after, musician Grimes sold her digital art for more than $6 million US Dollars. HEC Paris Associate Professor of finance Christophe Spaenjers explains how NFTs work and why they have become such big news for the investment world.

Is the GameStop Affair a collective action revolting against major hedge funds, or is it just another form of speculation by amateur investors also aiming to become rich? In the course of one week, GameStop’s stock value had catapulted to an impressive 1600% rise from its previous value. This situation had Wall Street trembling, and had hedge funds and individual investors at attention. As GameStop’s stock value continues to fluctuate towards a lower price, its initial steep climb up raises questions on stock market behavior, the actions of hedge fund investors, and the trading technique of short selling. HEC Paris professor of Finance Johan Hombert explains the mechanics behind the GameStop affair and Robinhood trading application.

Denis Gromb, Antin I.P. Chair Professor of Finance at HEC Paris, and HEC Paris EMBA graduate François Sauvageot present their business case study “Midas in Brazil”. Midas is a global chain of auto repair and maintenance centers, and the case connects several key themes such as franchising, the automotive aftermarket, valuation and joint ventures in a country renowned for its challenging business environment.

The 2020 Nobel Prize in Economics recognized Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson of Stanford University for their research on auctions. In this interview, Jean-Edouard Colliard, Associate Professor of Finance at HEC Paris and author of "Les Prix Nobel d’Economie", explains their research, and its role in the economy, society, and the perception of economists. 

The idea of issuing perpetual debt to combat the Covid crisis has recently been floated by prominent public figures such as hedge fund manager George Soros (The EU Should Issue Perpetual Bonds), economist Luis Garicano and former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt (Toward a European Reconstruction Fund). A perpetual bond is a bond that pays an annual coupon forever and whose principal is never repaid. Conceptually, a perpetual bond is a coupon-paying bond with an infinite maturity.

At the senior level, men outnumber women by a 10 to 1 ratio in the private equity sector. Considerations about gender equality notwithstanding, such a testosterone-only environment is not good for... the bottom line. A large-scale study of investment deals by HEC Paris professor of strategy and business policy proves that teams with at least one female member dramatically outperform male-only teams. An interview with Oliver Gottschalg.

HEC Paris Ph.D. student Huan Tang was rewarded the 2020 AQR Top Finance Graduate Award. This prize rewards the six best finance Ph.D. graduates in the world. Huan works on the value that consumers place on the privacy of information in online bank lending platforms, under the supervision of Johan Hombert, HEC Paris professor of finance. In this interview, Huan explains what her latest research brings to the field of data privacy in online banking and FinTechs.

Is the COVID-19 pandemic an opportunity for us to rethink our current energy system? Jean-Michel Gauthier, professor and Executive Director of the Energy & Finance Chair at HEC Paris, explains the global consequences of the coronavirus and paints a picture of the future of the Energy Transition right here at the heart of the European Union.

Trust plays a key role both in investors’ and entrepreneurs’ performances. It is built among others on a shared vision of entrepreneurship, as well as shared networks. In this interview, HEC Paris Professor Hélène Löning shares her expertise based on research and several studies about entrepreneurial ecosystems conducted with her students. She introduces the different relationship stages between investors and entrepreneurs, explains the consequences of shared images of entrepreneurship, and the business schools’ key role in building this relationship and its ability to innovate. To conclude, she emphasizes the notion of trust by explaining how it applies to investors and entrepreneurs.