To
disseminate and conduct applied research in the field of
quantitative wealth and risk management for individuals.
To
link and support a wide network of researchers who are
interested in the application of quantitative techniques to
problems in personal finance and insurance.
To
engage in sponsored research for industry
and government.
The financial services sector in Canada and North America has
witnessed rapid growth in the demand for personal financial
advice in every aspect of wealth management, insurance,
taxation, retirement planning and estate planning. The providers
of these services range from departments in the large financial
institutions and accounting firms, through the various brokerage
and mutual fund operations, to firms and sole practitioners
dedicated to financial planning for individuals and families.
Academic research and consulting in corporate finance, financial
institutions and professional portfolio management is now well
established and funded across North America. Financial support
and high-level research on individual financial decision-making
and risk management, however, has lagged behind the
above-mentioned fields. The IFID Centre is meant to partially
fill this gap by providing a forum for rigorous research in the field of personal finance
and insurance. The Fields Institute is dedicated to rigorous
research in the quantitative sciences and is a natural place to
house The IFID Centre.
The IFID Centre is
an evolving organization and is currently engaged in a variety
of activities and events:
Some of these activities are:
The
IFID Centre organizes periodic conferences and seminars at the
Fields Institute devoted to the topic of personal risk
management and insurance. In recent years we have had lectures
and seminars from Richard Roll (UCLA), Zvi Bodie (Boston U.),
James Poterba (MIT), Chester Spatt (CMU) as well as Larry
Kotlikoff (Boston U.)
The
IFID Centre has been commissioned to write a variety of
research reports on the topic of Mutual Funds and Income Taxes(PDF),
Fixed versus Floating Rate Mortgage Financing(PDF),
Retirement Income Strategies with Variable Payout Annuities(PDF).
The
IFID Centre has created and delivered unique lectures, keynote
addresses and seminars on the topic of personal financial risk
management.
Click here to view our past lectures.
The
IFID Centre acts as a resource for members of the media and
press who are looking for timely and reliable insights into
complex financial matters.
Click here to go to our Press
and Publicity page.
The
IFID Centre acts as a broker between applied industrial needs
and advanced academic know-how. We are able to tap into a vast
network of quantitative and financial specialists who are
world-renowned in their field.
