Financial Market & Corporate Outcomes (FMCO)

Financial Markets, Macroeconomics and Economic Policy

(Head: Dr François LE GRAND)

This research axis focuses on the recent trends and outcomes of financial markets’ functioning and the geopolitics of finance. The primary objective is to investigate mechanisms and processes that facilitate the smooth and efficient operations of financial markets, accounting for macro-economic development and equality, sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, economic policies and geopolitical nuances.

We notably aim to study:

• Traditional and contemporary financial markets, their efficiency, volatility, risks, portfolio allocation, IPOs;
• Issues related to the overall economy on a large scale, e.g., economic growth and development, optimal economic policy;
• Recent trends in the geopolitics of finance.

International Business, Corporate Governance and Performance

(Co-heads: Dr Tanveer AHSAN, Dr Mahabubur RAHMAN)

This research axis deals with the strategic, marketing and other managerial solutions to secure performance of international businesses. This revolves around the analysis of the ways and practices of directing, organizing, and controlling business organizations, the dynamics of corporate sustainability performance, as well as nuances of international business. In a nutshell, the researchers focus on research issues related to:

• accounting, reporting, governance, performance and other micro level outcomes in firms and banks;
• M&A;
• strategic, marketing and managerial solutions.

ESG and Islamic Finance

(Co-heads: Dr Christos ALEXAKIS, Dr Saqib AZIZ)

This research axis focuses on studying the issues related to alternative capital-raising and investment tools in light of ESG and Islamic finance.

ESG defines forms of sustainable finance. In 2021, the European Commission outlined contemporary ESG and sustainability trends in finance and overall economic development. This led to the creation and documentation of a new, sustainable finance strategy and a detailed action plan for financing sustainable growth in the zone. Islamic Finance, on the other hand, is a new stream in the area that provides for ethical investing, as per the directives of the Shariah Law.

ESG and Islamic finance today are complementary capital-raising and investment tools that have many shared principles and philosophies of investing and stock screening. Islamic banks need to report on the ESG impact of their activities.

FinTech and Financial Innovations

(Co-heads: Dr Akanksha JALAN, Dr Roman MATKOVSKYY)

Researchers focus on the pathbreaking financial innovations that are rocking the financial landscape today, promoting academic thought in the contemporary domain of FinTech and financial innovations, including green and sustainable innovations. This research aims at facilitating and stimulating intellectual activity across all major fields in social sciences, through the lens of the pathbreaking financial innovations in today’s financial world.

Through its finance-focused, yet multi-disciplinary approach, it focuses on financial innovation in terms of technology, marketing, policy, regulation, globalization, customer needs, competition and micro-economic conditions targeting at increasing investor awareness and inclusion.

Diversity & Integrity

(Head: Dr Akanksha JALAN)

Gender Equality, recognised as one of the United Nations’ 17 Global Goals, is emphasised in the European Commission’s Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025, highlighting the imperative of addressing this issue. The G20 summit in 2022 identified the potential of FinTech as a pivotal tool in narrowing the gender divide in the landscape of modern finance and banking. The increasing dynamics of global movement present both significant challenges and opportunities (European Commission’s New Pact on Migration and Asylum).

This research axis focuses on unraveling the complex relationship between diversity and integrity in modern finance, business and society.

Therefore, it aims to study how diverse perspectives and inclusive practices are integrated into finance, business, and policies, ensuring their integrity and sustainability, with a keen eye on promoting equality and sustained, inclusive growth. The overarching goal is to foster a financial and economic environment where diversity is not just acknowledged but actively embraced as a cornerstone of integrity and robust development.

The research focuses on the following:

• gender issues, including the gender gap in finance, women in leadership roles (inclusive leadership);
• inclusive innovation (technology-enabled access);
• financial literacy among diverse populations
• diversity and inclusivity issues considering global mobility, migration and inequality

Full Professors

• Auray Stéphane, Macroeconomics, Trade, Economics of war, Labor economics
• AZEMAR Céline, International business, taxation, Multinational firms, Tax evasion Fellow of the Pan-African Scientific Research Council Member of the International Institute of Public Finance
• BOUCEKKINE Raouf, Growth theory, Mathematical Economics, Interdisciplinary Applications
• COLOMBO Luca, Dynamic Games, Environmental and Natural Resource Economics, Industrial Organisation and Regulation
• HAMMAMI Helmi, Disclosure, Cash Flows, Financial Communication, IFRS, Accounting Education
• LE GRAND Francois, research group leader Macroeconomics, Theory and computation in macroeconomics, Economics of Risk, Household finance

Associate Professors

• AHSAN Tanveer, research group co-leader Corporate Finance, Corporate Governance, Sustainability Member of British Academy of Management.
• ALEXAKIS Christos, research group co-leader Sustainable finance, Islamic finance, behavioral finance, capital markets, SMEs, tourism
• AZIZ Saqib, research group co-leader M&A, Culture, ESG, Sustainable Finance, Corp Finance Member of – EFA, FMA, AFFI
• BOURAOUI Taoufik, Financial markets, Islamic finance
• D’AVINO Carmela, International banking and financial regulations
• FLICHY DE LA NEUVILLE Thomas, Geopolitics of finance
• JALAN Akanksha, research group co-leader Cryptocurrencies, Corporate Taxation, Gender Diversity, Corporate Governance Member of Cost Actions FinAI
• MATKOVSKYY Roman, research group co-leader Crypto assets, FinTech, Financial Markets, Behavioral Finance, Interdependence Member of AFFI, Cost Actions FinAI, Blockchain Research Centre
• RAHMAN Mahabubur, research group co-leader Strategic issues in marketing and firm performance, Sustainable marketing, Member of Academy of Marketing Science
• XIA Fan, Strategic Management
• YILDIRIM Canan, International finance, international business, banking, governance.

Assistant Professors

• KIM Seong-Young,  International business and strategy
• REZGUI Hichem, Accounting, Financial markets
• TAWIL Dima, Finance, Portfolio management. Risk measurement, Investment, Behavioral finance.
• TSELIKA Maria, Environmental and social trends, Investor preferences and sustainability
• VANWALLEGHEM Dieter, Finance, Institutions, Culture
• ZREIK Ousayna, Finance, Risks, Green credit

PhD Students

• Miram Amin, Sustainable Finance and Investments for MSMEs
• BALACHANDAR Lalitha shankari, Board Gender diversity and corporate outcomes
• Yuting CHEN, Sentiment and Narrative-augmented Bubble Detection and Prediction

The FMCO research team is actively contributing to the four research clusters, with more than 40 articles published since 2021 in top international peer-reviewed journals. In the past, FMCO team members have published in the best economic and finance outlets, including Econometrica, Management Science, Journal of Economic Theory, or Journal of Mathematical Economics. They have also written op-eds for general audience media (Le Figaro, Le Monde, Libération, etc.).

Members of FMCO serve as associate editors in several journals (Economic Theory, Journal of Mathematical Economics, International Review of Financial Analysis, International Review of Economics & Finance etc.) and editorial and advisory board members (Data in Brief journal, Heliyon Business and Economics, etc.).

• LeGrand, F. Ragot, X. (2023) Optimal policies with heterogeneous agents: Truncation and transitions. Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jedc.2023.104737)
• Jalan, A., Matkovskyy, R., Yarovaya, L., Urquhart, A.  (2023) The role of interpersonal trust in cryptocurrency adoption. Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, 83 , 10171
• Ahmad, M.F., Aktas, N., Aziz, S. (2023) Does Bilateral Trust Matter During Mergers and Acquisitions Negotiations? British Journal of Management, Vol. 34, 2212–2233
• Ahmad, M.F., Aziz, S. Dowling, M., Kowalewski, O. (2023) Board reforms and innovation. International Review of Financial Analysis, 102707
• Jalan, A., Matkovskyy, R., Urquhart, A. (2022) Demand elasticities of Bitcoin and Ethereum. Economics Letters, (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110877 )
• Rahman, M., Jang, S., Ahmed, S. (2022) How Does Selling Capability Impact Firm Value? The Moderating Roles of Relative Strategic Emphasis, Market Volatility, and Technological Volatility, British Journal of Management (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-8551.12659 )
• Farooq M., Aktas, A.N., Aziz, S (2022) Does Bilateral Trust Matter During Mergers and Acquisitions Negotiations? https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1467-8551.12692
• Ahmad, M.F., Aziz, S. and Dowling, M. (2022) Does target country cultural orientation influence M&A? British Journal of Management, Forthcoming. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12462 Ali, F., Zhang, Z., Tauni, M.Z., Butt, A.H., Ashan, T. (2022) Contingent self-esteem, social interaction fears, and compulsive WeChat usage. Behavior and Information Technology, https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2022.2039768
• Boucekkine, R., Fabbri, G., Federico, S., Gozzi, F. (2022) A dynamic theory of spatial externalities. Games and Economic Behavior 132, 133-165 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geb.2021.12.002 )
• Boucekkine, R., Prieur, F., Ruan, W., Zou, B. (2022) Uncertainty-driven symmetry-breaking and stochastic stability in a generic differential game of lobbying. Economic Theory, 1-45 ( in press, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00199-021-01403-3 )
• Flichy De La Neuville, T (2022) Géopolitique de la Finance. Editions universitaires Rhin et Danube, 107 p ISBN 9782493323101
• Alexakis, C., Kenourgios, D., Pappas, V., Petropoulou, A. (2021) From dotcom to Covid-19: A convergence analysis of Islamic investments. Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money 75, 101423 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intfin.2021.101423 )
• Aziz, S., Jalan, A., Matkovskyy, R. and Bouraoui, T. (2021). Does Shariah compliance affect investor behaviour in the COVID-19 times: Evidence from herding in the global energy market. Applied Economics, in press (https://doi.org/10.1080/00036846.2021.1999384 )
• Aziz, S., M. Rahman, D. Hussain, & D. K. Nguyen (2021).Does corporate environmentalism affect firm insolvency risk? The role of market power and competitive intensity. Ecological Economics, 189, 107182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107182
• Ghlamallah, E., Alexakis, C., Dowling, M., Piepenbrink, A. (2021) The topics of Islamic economics and finance research. International Review of Economics & Finance, 75, 145-160. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2021.04.006 )
• Jalan, A., Matkovskyy, R. and Urquhart, A. (2021). “What effect did the introduction of Bitcoin futures have on the Bitcoin spot market?” The European Journal of Finance, 27(13), 1251-1281 (https://doi.org/10.1080/1351847X.2020.1869992 )
• Jalan, A., Matkovskyy, R., and Yarovaya, L. (2021). Shiny crypto assets: A systemic look at gold-backed cryptocurrencies during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Review of Financial Analysis 78, 101958 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2021.101958)
• Umar, Z., Aziz, S., & Tawil, D. (2021). The impact of COVID-19 induced panic on the return and volatility of precious metals. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 31, 100525. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbef.2021.100525)
• Vanwalleghem, D., Yildirim, C., Mukanya, A. (2021) Leveraging local knowledge or global advantage: Cross border bank mergers and acquisitions in Africa, Emerging Markets Review 42, 100656 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ememar.2019.100656 )
• Yildirim, C., Kasman, A., and Hamid, FS. (2021) Impact of foreign ownership on market power: Do regional banks behave differently in ASEAN countries? Economic Modelling, 105, 105654. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econmod.2021.105654)
• Azémar, C., Desbordes, R. and Wooton, I. (2020) Is international tax competition only about taxes? A market-based perspective. Journal of Comparative Economics 48 (4), 891-912 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jce.2020.05.002 )

Humboldt University – joint projects submitted and Cryptocurrency research centre, a think tank and research community established with the University of Zurich.

ENSAI — joint conference organisation.
University college Dublin – PhD co-supervision
Skema Business School — research projects
ETH Zurich — research projects
OFCE-SciencesPo — research projects.

Several FMCO researchers are members of the European Union’s Horizon 2020 COST Action “FinAI: Fintech and Artificial Intelligence in Finance – Towards a transparent financial industry” (CA19130, European Cooperation in Science and Technology), also serving as Management Committee and Core Group Members, and co-coordinator of STSM grants.

Some of these research projects of the FMCO team members have been recognised for their contribution and supported externally (e.g. Nasdaq Nordic foundation).

Seminars 2023-2024 (* means planned seminars)

• TBD*: Franck Portier, UCL
• TBD*: Patrick Fève, Toulouse School of Economics
• 1st February 2024*: Axelle Ferrière, Paris School of Economics.
• 30 November 2023*: Chantal Marlats, Université Panthéon-Assas, Paris II.
• 23 November 2023*: Eric André, emlyon business school
• 16 November 2023*: Jeanne Commault, SciencesPo Paris
• 18 October 2023: Renaud Bourlès, Centrale Marseille
• 28 September 2023: Nicolas Coeurdacier, SciencesPo Paris

Seminars 2022-2023

• July 10-13, 2023: Cal B. Muckley, University College Dublin
• 23 May 2023: Yannick Malevergne, Pantheon-Sorbonne University
• 16 May 2023: David Zerbib, EDHEC Business School
• 4 April 2023: Guillaume Coqueret, emlyon business school
• 28 February 2023: Amir Rabah (Iowa University)
• 21 February 2023: Pedro Jara-Moroni (Universidad de Santiago de Chile)
• 17 January 2023: Veronika Czellar, Skema Business School
• 13 December 2022: Antoine Bommier, ETH Zurich
• June 2022: Farooq Ahmad, SKEMA, winner of the best paper on finance by the Finance Journal, French Finance Association 2022

Conferences and workshops

• 7 December 2023*: Mini-workshop coorganized with ENSAI on heterogeneous-agent models with Elisabeth Proehl (University of Amsterdam), Morten Ravn (UCL), Gianluca Violante (Princeton University), Pablo Winant (ESCP)
• 13-15 September 2023: Workshop on the economics of aging co-organized with ETH Zurich (https://riskcenter.ethz.ch/events/workshops.html)
• 11-12 May 2023: Conference on macroeconomics at ENSAI, with Northwestern University.
• 23-25 May 2022: 38th Conference of the French Finance Association jointly with Université de Rennes 1 CREM & IGR – IAE Rennes
• 7-8 April 2022: Cryptocurrency asset investment with financial support from Region Bretagne (jointly with AI driven business and Future Finance and Economics Association)
• Scientific committee member of the external Cryptocurrency research conferences, Southampton University, 2021 and Durham University, 2022, International University of Monaco (Roman MATKOVSKYY, Akanksha JALAN)

Dissemination of research by teaching

The FMCO team is also engaged in the BiM, MSc, EMBA, and DBA programmes, in particularly on MSc in International Finance (FT ranked programme #23). Recently, a new MSc specialization linked to the research center has been launched: MSc Financial Data Intelligence and FinTech Business.

Dr Roman Matkovskyy or Dr François Le Grand
surname.name@rennes-srb.com