We find evidence that conflicts of interest are pervasive in the asset management business owned by investment banks. Using data from 1990 to 2008, we compare the alphas of mutual funds, hedge funds and institutional funds operated by investment banks and non-bank conglomerates. We find that...

Most mutual fund managers have performance-based contracts that are incomplete. We study risk-shifting implications emanating from these contracts. Our theory predicts that mutual fund managers with asymmetric contracts and mid-year performance close to their announced benchmark increase their...

Performance of investment products managed by firms in which PhDs play a key role is superior to the performance of products managed by otherwise similar firms. This relation is not a result of endogenous matching between firms and PhDs. Performance is related to training (the field of study)...