Paul Pfleiderer

The C.O.G. Miller Distinguished Professor of Finance
Director, Corporations and Society Initiative
Academic Area:
Paul Pfleiderer

Bio

Paul Pfleiderer received BA, MPhil, and PhD degrees from Yale University, all in the field of economics. He has been teaching at Stanford since 1981. His research, much of which has been jointly pursued with Anat Admati, another professor of finance at the GSB, is generally concerned with issues that arise when agents acting in financial markets are differentially informed. His current research concerns corporate governance. In addition to his academic research, Professor Pfleiderer has consulted for various corporations and banks and has been involved in developing risk models and optimization software for use by portfolio managers.

Research Interests

  • Market Microstructure
  • Asset Allocation
  • Corporate Governance
  • Regulation of Financial Institutions

Academic Degrees

  • PhD in Economics, Yale University, 1982
  • MPhil in Economics, Yale University, 1979
  • BA, Yale University, 1976

Academic Appointments

  • At Stanford University since 1981.

Awards and Honors

  • Susan Ford Dorsey Faculty Fellow for 2021–22

Research Statement

Paul Pfleiderer’s early research was primarily focused on issues arising in financial markets when traders are asymmetrically informed. In pursuing that research he developed theoretical models that analyze how information is incorporated in prices through trading and how information flows determine trading volume. He also analyzed how information is sold to investors when the value of the information is reduced the more widely it is disseminated. In other research he studied problems involved in measuring active funds’ performance, contracting concerns in venture financing, and policy issues related to disclosure requirements. His most recent research addresses issues in corporate governance and the regulation of banks and other financial institutions.

Journal Articles

Paul Pfleiderer
Economica
January 2020 Vol. 87 Issue 345 Pages 81-107
Anat R. Admati, Peter M. DeMarzo, Martin F. Hellwig, Paul Pfleiderer
The Journal of Finance
February 2018 Vol. 73 Issue 1 Pages 145-198
Terry Marsh, Paul Pfleiderer
The Journal Portfolio of Management
2016 Vol. 42 Issue 5 Pages 51-66
Anat R. Admati, Peter Conti-Brown, Paul Pfleiderer
UCLA Law Review
2012 Vol. 59 Issue 4 Pages 853-913
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Review of Financial Studies
2009 Vol. 22 Pages 2245-2285
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
International Economic Review
2004 Vol. 45 Issue 2 Pages 467-498
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Review of Financial Studies
2000 Vol. 13 Issue 3 Pages 479-519
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
The Journal of Business
1997 Vol. 70 Issue 3 Pages 323-350
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer, Josef Zechner
Journal of Political Economy
1994 Vol. 102 Issue 6 Pages 1097-1130
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Journal of Finance
1994 Vol. 49 Issue 2 Pages 371–402
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
The New Palgrave Dictionary of Money and Finance
1993
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
The New Palgrave Dictionary of Money and Finance
1993
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Review of Financial Studies
1991 Vol. 4 Issue 3 Pages 443-481
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Econometrica
1990 Vol. 58 Issue 4 Pages 901-928
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Review of Financial Studies
1989 Vol. 2 Pages 189–223
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Review of Financial Studies
1988 Vol. 1 Issue 1 Pages 3-40
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
American Economic Review
1988 Vol. 78 Issue 2, Papers and Proceedings of the One-Hundredth Annual Meeting of the American Economic Association Pages 96–103
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Journal of Economic Theory
1987 Vol. 43 Issue 1 Pages 76-115
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Journal of Economic Theory
1986 Vol. 39 Issue 2 Pages 400–438
Anat R. Admati, Sudipto Bhattacharya, Paul Pfleiderer, Stephen A. Ross
Journal of Finance
1986 Vol. 41 Issue 3 Pages 715-730
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer
Journal of Economic Theory
1985 Vol. 35 Issue 1 Pages 191–195

Working Papers

Anat R. Admati, Peter M. DeMarzo, Martin F. Hellwig , Paul Pfleiderer November 2017
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer, Josef Zechner 1992
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer 1990
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer 1987
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer 1986
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer, Stephen Ross, Sudipto Bhattachary 1986
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer, William F. Sharpe 1986
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer 1985
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer 1984
Paul Pfleiderer, Sudipto Bhattacharya 1983
Paul Pfleiderer, Sudipto Bhattacharya 1983

Book Chapters

Anat R. Admati, Peter M. DeMarzo, Martin Hellwig, Paul Pfleiderer
Central Banks at a Crossroads: Europe and Beyond
2014 Pages 33-50

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Cases

William Meehan III, Paul Pfleiderer, Michael Kennedy, Debra McCoy
2013
Michael Kennedy, Debra McCoy, William Meehan III, Sheila Melvin, Paul Pfleiderer
2013
Michael Kennedy, Debra McCoy, William Meehan III, Paul Pfleiderer
2013
William Meehan, Paul Pfleiderer, Sheila Melvin, Debra McCoy
2013
William Meehan III, Paul Pfleiderer, Michael Kennedy, Debra McCoy, Sheila Melvin
2012
William Meehan III, Paul Pfleiderer, Michael Kennedy, Debra McCoy
2012
Anat R. Admati, Paul Pfleiderer, George Noroian
1995

In the Media

Insights by Stanford Business

March 15, 2023
Four finance professors talk about the ongoing risks banks face and the consequences of backstopping uninsured deposits.
October 08, 2020
Friedman’s credo that corporations should focus only on maximizing shareholder value rests on assumptions that are “far from true in the real world.”
March 26, 2020
An open letter drafted by Stanford professors says the coronavirus stimulus package should benefit workers — not corporations and their wealthy shareholders.
December 05, 2017
15 Stanford business professors recommend books for those long winter nights.
August 30, 2016
Stanford GSB professors suggest articles and books related to the concept of “equity.”
July 25, 2016
New research questions whether “smart” beta is always smart.
June 17, 2016
Banks are not alone when it comes to being overleveraged.
October 29, 2013
A finance professor says big banks need tougher capital regulations — for our sake, and for theirs.
January 28, 2013
How, and why, Stanford's Anat Admati took on the banking system.
May 14, 2012
Why bankers like leverage — and what that could mean for the global financial system.
June 01, 2011
Boston Fed CEO Eric Rosengren says money market mutual funds are vulnerable to the European debt crisis.
September 01, 2010
A finance professor says raising bank capital requirements would produce widespread social benefits as well.
December 01, 2001
The emerging field of behavioral finance analyzes how deviations from standard rational assumptions may have important effects on stock prices.
September 01, 1996
Two scholars say it's time to ask if the people investing your money are properly motivated.

School News

January 31, 2023
Longtime lecturer at Stanford GSB and revered mentor at McKinsey & Company
October 16, 2018
Students take the lead in Stanford GSB Impact Fund to manage investments in mission-driven startups.
December 05, 2016
A hands-on learning opportunity for students to manage a fund focused on social and environmental impact, Stanford GSB Impact Fund has made its first investment.
September 05, 2011
"Finance is becoming increasingly integrated with economics, and is drawing more widely from other disciplines," observes Singleton.