The Department of Finance in the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Melbourne is pleased to continue its annual conference series: Finance Down Under: Building on the Best from the Cellars of Finance. The conference will be held in person and will take place in Melbourne, Australia, between February 25th and February 27th, 2027.
Overview
We invite submissions that embody the best in current empirical and theoretical research. We welcome papers in asset pricing, corporate finance and all other areas of finance. The general academic sessions will comprise papers from all areas. The conference selection committee includes eminent scholars in every facet of finance. With the help of the selection committee, we strive to provide a conference program that is internationally renowned for excellent presentations, discussions, and keynote speeches.
A unique feature of the program is that we honour 'vintage' research that has inspired recent advances and withstood the test of time. In 2027, we will celebrate the body of work by Professor Laura Veldkamp of Columbia University, given its impact on academia, industry and regulators. We are honoured to have Professor Veldkamp and Professor Christian Hellwig of the Toulouse School of Economics as our keynote speakers.
In addition to submissions in all other areas, we particularly encourage submission of work related to Professor Veldkamp's contributions on how investors’ or firms’ use of data and AI affects consumers, investors, the macroeconomy, economic measurement and financial valuations.
Paper Submission Procedure
The deadline for paper submissions is 11:59 pm US Eastern Time, September 25, 2026. Papers should be submitted electronically at http://editorialexpress.com/conference/FDU2027. A submission fee of US$100 will be required for each submission. Complete instructions for submission and other information can be found at https://fbe.unimelb.edu.au/conferences/fdu
Papers will be reviewed by members of the conference selection committee, and authors of selected papers will be notified in early November 2026. For further questions, please contact our administrator at fdu-conference@unimelb.edu.au
Award
- The J Spencer Martin Best Paper Award, with a prize of A$4,000.
We hope that you can join us in 2027 in delightful late-summer Melbourne.
FDU Organising Committee
Federico Nardari (Chair), Carole Comerton-Forde, Eduard Inozemtsev and Qi Zeng
Department of Finance
Faculty of Business & Economics
The University of Melbourne Victoria 3010 AUSTRALIA
For any questions please contact fdu-conference@unimelb.edu.au
Accommodation
Finance Down Under Conference has negotiated a discounted accommodation rate for conference attendees at the following hotels:
voco Melbourne Central
18 Timothy Lane, Melbourne 3000
The hotel is moments away from Bourke Street Mall, Melbourne Central Station and the Emporium Shoppping Centre and approximately a 10 minute walk to The University of Melbourne.
Please click here to access the direct booking link which will offer 15% discount off the best available rate.
Veriu Queen Victoria Market
91/101 Therry St, Melbourne 3000
Conveniently located next to the iconic Queen Victoria Market and approximately 8 minutes walk to The University of Melbourne, with a range of premium dining outlets and shops on the hotel's doorstep.
Please click here and then enter the special code FDUC15 which will offer 15% discount off the best available rate. (When submitting the code, you will need to select rate access/corporate code.)
Crowne Plaza Melbourne Carlton
Professor Laura Veldkamp
Laura Veldkamp is the Leon G. Cooperman Professor of Finance & Economics at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business, with an economics Ph.D. from Stanford. She has been a board member and chair of the governance committee for the American Finance Association, an editor of the Journal of Economic Theory and a frequent keynote speaker at prestigious academic conferences in both finance and economics. Currently, Professor Veldkamp serves on the American Economic Association’s awards committee and co-chairs the program committee for the annual conference of the Society for Financial Studies. Her accomplishments have earned her recognition as a fellow of the Econometric Society, the Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory, the Finance Theory Group, the National Bureau of Economic Research and the Centre for Economic and Policy Research. In the public sphere, she is an economic advisor for the New York Federal Reserve and the Bank of International Settlements.
Professor Veldkamp’s research examines how investors’ or firms’ use of data and AI affect consumers, the macroeconomy, markups, economic measurement and financial valuations. She is an author of two textbooks: Information Choice in Macroeconomics and Finance, and The Data Economy: Tools and Applications, both with Princeton University Press.
Professor Christian Hellwig
Christian Hellwig is Professor of Economics at the Toulouse School of Economics. He was previously Assistant and Associate Professor of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles. He received his PhD from London School of Economics (2002). His research focuses on information and coordination problems in macroeconomics and finance. Recently his work shifted towards inequality, redistribution and optimal taxation.
2026 Award Winners
The Spencer Martin Best Paper Award | AUD$4,000 |
Institutional Investors’ Subjective Risk Premia: Time Variation and Disagreement Spencer Couts, University of Southern California Andrei Goncalves; Ohio State University Yicheng Liu; Ohio State University Johnathan Loudis; University of Notre Dame |
Impact Paper Award | AUD$1,500This award is presented to a paper that has relevance to the Asia-Pacific region and/or to the asset management industry. |
When Public Information Goes Private: Analyst Careers and Market Efficiency Christoph Schiller; Ohio State University |
Social Program Fees (subject to change)
(Limited places available)