Endorsements from Abroad

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Started teaching at Stanford University in 1970.

Message

I am very pleased to see the establishment of Japan’s first comprehensive graduate school in finance. In Europe and the United States, financial research and education are undertaken by both business schools and economics faculties in a competitive, yet complementary, relationship. The University of Tokyo has designed a wide-ranging program that covers asset-management theory, corporate finance, derivative financing, game theory, and micro- and macro-economic financial policy. This kind of comprehensive program will draw world attention. As Japan’s first program using data from the Asia-Pacific region, the school will undoubtedly produce both research and education that will generate interest worldwide.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago. He has taught at MIT, the University of Chicago and Stanford University.

Message

For over thirty-five years I have conducted research into understanding the valuation of derivatives and their use in facilitating risk sharing and risk transfer in the economy. Financial derivatives, such as futures and options, are extremely useful instruments to increase efficiency in the allocation of resources and risk-sharing among investors, corporations and other entities in the global economy. The Japanese economy, and, in particular, financial entities in the economy, for too long now have been mired in the difficulties of the past. As a result, the Japanese economy has not been given the opportunities to fulfill its growth potential. With an increasingly complex environment, in particular with increasing globalization, shocks are likely to occur more frequently and to be of greater magnitude than in the past. Option theory teaches us that under more likely volatile conditions, flexibility is more valuable. That is, uncertainty enhances the value of our teams, our human capital. This means that value is enhanced by concentrating our scarce talent to address known problems, and build new tools and methods to implement old tools more efficiently to address new and exciting opportunities. The Graduate Program in Finance at the University of Tokyo will become a place that brings together the diverse talent necessary to tackle these issues and it will become a showcase for the world. Congratulations. I expect that your new graduate program and new research center in finance will become highly successful.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from MIT; has taught at the University of Chicago and MIT. Dr. Fischer was the First Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, from September 1994 until the end of August 2001. After leaving IMF, he served as Vice Chairman of Citigroup and President of Citigroup International, from February 2002 to April 2005. He became Governor of the Bank of Israel on May 1, 2005.

Message

I am happy to hear that the University of Tokyo is creating a new teaching program and research center focusing on monetary economics and corporate finance. In the U.S. there is a healthy interaction between policy makers and the business and academic communities, with academics often moving into policy positions and then returning to academic pursuits. Japan will benefit as the new center encourages this process in Japan. I understand also that the new program will place emphasis on teaching corporate finance as U.S. business schools do, and on policy research as U.S. economic departments do. Its plan to foster research on monetary policy issues in Asia, including Japan, is also very important. Congratulations on your new venture, and with best wishes for its great success.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He served on the faculty of MIT’s Sloan School of Management before joining the Harvard Business School in 1988.

Message

I am delighted to know that leading finance scholars of Japan are going to establish a new institution of financial economics on the campus of the University of Tokyo with strong support from the government and industry.
I am told that this plan emphasizes global competition in financial research and that the new financial research center will build a comprehensive database covering Asia-Pacific financial markets. As these markets play increasingly important roles in the global economy, this institution will become a central location where top-priority research projects are carried out with collaboration among world-leading scholars in universities, business and government.

Background

Received his Doctorate of Economics from Harvard University; has taught at the University of Pennsylvania, Yale University and MIT.

Message

I was very pleased to hear that the University of Tokyo is establishing a new financial research center and a graduate program in finance. The University of Tokyo is one of the great universities of the world and by putting its resources into financial research and education it validates the importance of this field and strengthens research and education in finance. As an economist, I believe that this will serve as an impetus for the advancement of economic development both directly in the world of business and commerce, where the United States is a strong competitive partner, and indirectly through its impact on the field of financial research. I applaud this decision and am very grateful for it.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from MIT. Started teaching at Princeton University from 1971.

Message

Congratulations on your new research center and graduate program in finance. I have long thought that Japanese universities should and could be stronger in carrying out applied research that is useful for understanding real-world economic problems and for designing appropriate economic policies. The University of Tokyo’s new program plans to address this weakness by engaging in many joint activities with the business community and with policymakers around the world. The program is well equipped with professors who know how to communicate with the outside world. Combining corporate finance with monetary economics in a single institution will be an immense help. The program’s emphasis on increasingly interdependent Asian economies and markets is also relevant. I am looking forward to seeing its achievements.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from MIT; has taught at Stanford University and HEC School of Management

Message

I applaud the creation of a specialization in financial systems. At a time when honors students in Europe are competing to become leading figures in finance, the University of Tokyo has opened its doors to overseas professors and developed an excellent curriculum. There is no doubt that this be a great advantage for Asian graduate students. While many Asians are included among the ranks of famous financial scholars, the University of Tokyo will increasingly witness the development of financial theories and models under Japanese authorship as it advocates the globalization of research and education in graduate schools.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Accounting from the University of Chicago. He was the L. H. Penney Professor of Accounting at the Haas School at the University of California, Berkeley before moving to Columbia University in 1999.

Message

After many years of research, I have come to understand that the very important clues for knowing the true value of companies are buried in accounting information. Although the Japanese economy still ranks among the top economies of the world, its accounting studies have not presented much substantive research for the world community of accounting scholars. An abundant database is required to produce substantive research in accounting and finance, which I have heard is lagging behind in Japan. The Financial Research Center at the University of Tokyo is designed with the aim to overcome these problems. I strongly applaud these aims. The Center will also endeavor to conduct cooperative research internationally. The world-class researchers gathering at the University of Tokyo will be able to reveal the accounting mechanisms of Japanese and Asian corporations as well as the relationship between accounting information and corporate valuation. I look forward to the results they present to the world. This fundamental research will enhance efficiency in financial markets, improve financial reporting, and contribute to the further growth of the Japanese economy.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Finance from Stanford University. He has served on business school faculties at the University of Chicago, Stanford University, and Duke University.

Message

The financial system is an indispensable infrastructure for modern capitalist societies. Competition within the financial industry is essential for the development of the capitalist system. The recent failing of the Japanese banking system is partly attributable to the absence of solid banking principles, risk management, and sound competition.
Research into the functioning of financial intermediaries and securities markets is very important for the sustainable growth and progress of the economy. I expect that the new graduate finance program at the University of Tokyo will be an important development for the intellectual community in Asia and the world. It is well understood that intellectual competition in financial research greatly contributes to the advancement of Economics. The University of Tokyo will widely demonstrate its abilities as a major player in financial research. I also hope that this new graduate program will build a good relationship with the one at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Background

Received his Doctorate in Economics from Stanford University. Started teaching at Stanford University from 1984.

Message

Japan and its leading researchers play influential roles in the continuously dynamic, complex and changing world of financial markets and financial economic research. The training of policymakers and entrepreneurs who will understand the fundamentals of advanced finance is thus a matter of great urgency. I believe that the establishment of a comprehensive graduate program in finance at the University of Tokyo – a gathering point for Japan’s young elite – is very significant, and I hold great optimism for its success.

Background

Received his Doctorate in Economics from the University of Oxford. Started teaching at the University of Pennsylvania from 1980.

Message

I have many hopes hinged on the development of a specialization in financial systems at the University of Tokyo. The problem of finding properly functioning financial systems is a high priority not just for the economies of Japan and Asia, but for the world economy too. As such, it is a remarkable and timely accomplishment to have founded a graduate program that specializes in such research and education. In the not-to-distant future, this graduate program will produce many excellent specialists who will certainly make a valuable contribution to the world of finance.

Background

Received his Ph.D. in Economics from MIT. Served as a staff economist for the Federal Reserve Board (FRB). Started teaching at the University of Chicago in 1991.

Message

I am delighted to learn that the University of Tokyo is going to create a new teaching program and research center focusing on monetary economics and corporate finance. Having the two disciplines in a single program in the city of Tokyo will facilitate interaction between Tokyo University’s excellent faculty and the country’s key businessmen and policymakers. This interaction should benefit everyone. I understand that the monetary economics part of the center addresses issues such as the workings and optimal design of financial systems as well as those related to macroeconomic monetary policy. I myself have long taken interest in the workings of the Japanese financial system including the causes and consequences of the recent bad loan problem and have written extensively on related topics. Among other things, I am looking forward to the center’s achievement in these areas.