Research Foundation

Once a specialist corner of #Finance, today #InfrastructureDebt is playing a much larger role in how long-term assets get built, financed, and refinanced. Read our latest brief for a look at the asset class across project stages, #Investor types, and the risks taking shape. cfainst.is/4dF3NiT

From global market shifts to portfolio construction evolution, the need for thoughtful, long-horizon #InvestmentResearch has never been greater. Donate to @CFAResearchFndn and advance our mission to inform, challenge, and elevate investment practice: cfainst.is/3PQiu8M

In an increasingly digital research environment, format still plays a critical role in how insights are absorbed. Our publications are available in e-reader formats from Amazon Kindle and Apple Books, making it easier to engage with longer-form research across devices, whether desktop, tablet, or mobile. Our monographs are also available in print through Amazon print-on-demand. This added flexibility allows practitioners to integrate rigorous #research into their workflow wherever they are, but without sacrificing depth or usability. Access available formats at the bottom of each report page.

The rapid adoption of #AI tools in #finance is broadly positive, but the issue of AI “hallucinations” is unresolved. Listen to Francesco Fabozzi, PhD, discuss solutions, including agentic models, in part 2 of his Financial Thought Exchange interview. cfainst.is/46Uq9Zr

#NaturalLanguageProcessing (NLP) has been used in #finance for decades, but the rise of large language models have put NLP back in the spotlight. Francesco Fabozzi, PhD, discusses the technical progression of NLP in the latest Financial Thought Exchange episode: cfainst.is/4lcCnTf #AI

Searching for an overview of #AI techniques, models and frameworks for #InvestmentManagement workflow? Read the practitioner briefs accompanying “AI in Asset Management: Tools, Applications, and Frontiers,” our new book for practitioners looking to build fluency without starting from scratch: bit.ly/4rG1T5t

How do you structure nine centuries of financial development? In “Five Financial Eras: How Financial Markets Transformed the World,” Bryan Taylor, PhD, organizes more than 900 years of market evolution into 20 distinct financial periods. The diagram illustrates the timeline. Learn more: cfainst.is/4c6pozW

What does #QuantumComputing look like when viewed through a finance lens? Hear the discussion on Financial Thought Exchange as host Lotta Moberg, CFA, and Oswaldo Zapata of the Quantum Finance Boardroom discuss fundamentals for finance. youtube.com/watch?v=n8I99a…

Rigorous, independent #InvestmentResearch is a public good, but it needs support. Contributions to CFA Institute Research Foundation help fund in-depth content to benefit society at large. Consider supporting our mission – donate today. cfainst.is/4bsixjV

In “Stocks for the Long Run Revisited: Dividends and ‘The Return Nobody Got’,” Paul McCaffrey re-examines a key assumption behind historical #equity performance, that #dividends were continuously, frictionlessly reinvested. But in practice? Read the latest: cfainst.is/3Nxfa1f

Ethical #AIinFinance is applying governance, judgment, and #RiskManagement in real-world decision-making. Listen to Lotta Moberg, CFA, and Anna Martirosyan on the Enterprising #Investor podcast discussing ethical AI, and how ethics shape outcomes: cfainst.is/45H65ZS

The #Financial Thought Exchange #podcast brings depth, curiosity, and candor to the ideas driving modern #investing. Don’t just keep up with the conversation — get ahead of it. Subscribe now: @CFA_Research_Foundation/featured" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@CFA_Research_…

@pensionsnews recently covered the release of “AI in #AssetManagement: Tools, Applications, and Frontiers,” a new book that illuminates the impact of #AI and #machinelearning on investment strategy and professional practice while emphasizing transparency, accountability, and ethical governance. The book helps #investment professionals understand the tools, capabilities, and responsibilities that come with this #technology. ☞ Read the article: pionline.com/asset-manageme… ☞ Explore the book: rpc.cfainstitute.org/research/found…

As a new decade began, CFA Institute Research Foundation published one of the first major works of the 2020s — a reflection on how modern finance became a #science. “Robert C. Merton and the Science of Finance” looks at the lasting influence of Robert C. Merton, drawing on insights shared at MIT’s symposium marking his 75th birthday. Contributors examine how Merton’s ideas reshaped financial theory, informed practice, and helped establish #finance as an engineering-based discipline, from continuous-time finance to retirement security and institutional design. rpc.cfainstitute.org/research/found…

As part of the CFA Institute Research Foundation’s Anniversary Collection, we’re resurfacing “ESG and Responsible Institutional Investing Around the World: A Critical Review” (2020) by Pedro Matos. This single piece indexes the #ESG research conversation and lays out the major questions tackled in the research, with institutional #investors as the through-line, including sections on worldwide ownership trends, foreign institutional investors, and the “Big Three.” rpc.cfainstitute.org/research/found…

In the latest Financial Thought Exchange, host Larry Siegel speaks with Dr. William J. Bernstein — author, retired neurologist, and former #investment manager. They explore a four-factor framework for how prosperity takes hold, plus the idea of a society’s “radius of trust.” The conversation then shifts to #investing: why he favors broad-market, passive exposure and why liability matching with inflation-protected vehicles like TIPS matters for retirees. ▶ youtu.be/QZiWgFKy60I?si…

Lotta Moberg sits down with Ehren Stanhope to talk about the evolution from direct to truly custom indexing. They cover #tax-aware strategies, RIA flexibility, and one particularly clever innovation: a #MachineLearning technique that helps executives avoid hidden overexposure to their own companies. Watch the full episode: youtube.com/watch?v=8Wk5qI…

From dissecting small-cap performance to challenging assumptions about diversification, this episode of the Financial Thought Exchange is packed with sharp insights and practical nuance. Watch the full conversation ➠ lnkd.in/eK8sbumv

Why do so many #FactorInvesting strategies look great in backtests but flop in real life? This short, powerful read introduces the idea of the “factor mirage” — a model that seems to work statistically but breaks down because it’s causally wrong. If you work with factor models , or just want to understand why so many fail, this is a must-read: rpc.cfainstitute.org/research/found…