Valentin Haddad
Associate Professor of Finance
About
Valentin Haddad’s research interests lie in asset pricing and macroeconomics with financial frictions. He has looked at how financial institutions trade and manage risk, and how their practices affect market prices and the economy — and found that a lot of what we thought was obvious is not. His recent studies show that life insurance companies’ investments in Treasuries, contrary to traditional assumptions, are actually quite risky.
Topics
![Photo of Valentin Haddad](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/valentin-haddad.jpg)
7 Articles
![An illustration of a man at the end of a cliff trying to pull up a coin tied to a string](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/AR-thumb-whatever-it-takes.jpg)
Options Market Signals Scope of Federal Reserve Interventions
Traders see an implicit promise beyond specific asset purchases
![Graphic of investor leisurely sitting in front of an investment terminal reading a book](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/AR-passive-stock-thumb-760x570.jpg)
As Passive Investing Spreads, Overall Market Becomes Less Competitive
Active investors take up some — but not all — of the slack created by index funds
![Lehman Brothers building on September 15](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/AR-financial-intermediaries-thumb-760x570.jpg)
When Financial Intermediaries Sneeze, These Assets Catch a Cold
Some investment vehicles are more reliant than others on the health of trading firms
![A bubble refracts light and the image of a window](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/AR-bubble-innovation-thumb-760x570.jpg)
Market Bubbles Aren’t Entirely Irrational Exuberance
A model examines the relationships between innovation, speculation and market values
![Bar and line chart](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AR-buyout-hero-760x570.jpg)
What Drives LBO Fever? More Than Just Cheap Loans
Private equity investors weigh the total cost of capital — not just debt, but equity as well — when pursuing buyouts
![Illustration of a character wearing a hat covering their ears](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AR-info-aversion-hero-760x570.jpg)
Ignorance — About One’s Investments, Anyway — Isn’t Always Bliss
Valentin Haddad’s research looks at the phenomenon of “information aversion,” when individual investors stop tracking their portfolios for fear of bad news
![New York Met Life building](https://anderson-review.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/AR-asset-insulators-hero-760x570.jpg)
How Life Insurers Insulate the Markets from Turmoil
Valentin Haddad’s research finds that insurers’ patient investing shields risky assets — and those who hold them — from steeper declines