I am a Ph.D. Candidate in Business Administration, Risk Management & Insurance at Temple University Fox School of Business.

Current Research Interests: Financial Institutions, Insurance Economics, Financial Regulations, Corporate Finance of Insurance Companies

Working Papers:

• Investment Decisions of Insurers in the Face of Demand Shocks

  Abstract: Insurance companies are among the largest institutional investors, and their decisions have important implications for financial markets. Moreover, insurers’ underwriting and investment operations are interdependent, and shocks to one can affect the other. Using variations in pandemic-related lockdowns and their impact on demand for auto insurance, the largest Property & Casualty (P&C) business line, I study the causal effect of demand shocks on insurers’ investment strategies. I find firms experiencing weaker underwriting demand face lower capital requirements and choose to take more risk in their assets by investing in more speculative bonds. Results indicate a nuanced relationship between insurers’ underwriting and investment operations.

• Interest Rates, Asset Duration, and Insurers Product Pricing

  Abstract: I examine how the duration of assets held by Property and Casualty (P&C) insurers affects their pricing during periods of increasing interest rates. In a rapidly rising interest rate environment, insurers with longer asset duration face greater investment losses, avoid realizing them, and settle with lower investment yields. Using a difference-in-differences design, I show that these firms are at a disadvantage in the product market and cannot adequately adjust their prices to remain competitive. I find that insurers’ tendency to hold bonds to maturity driven by HCA impedes the transmission of monetary policies, specifically during aggressive tightening cycles.

Work in Progress:

• Business Credit Under Creeping Disasters: Evidence from Opioid Epidemic