Featuring Harry Markowitz

Harry M. Markowitz, American finance and economics educator, cowinner (with Merton H. Miller and William F. Sharpe) of the 1990 Nobel Prize for Economics for theories on evaluating stock-market risk and reward and on valuing corporate stocks and bonds.

Markowitz studied at the University of Chicago (Ph.B., 1947; M.A., 1950; Ph.D., 1954) and then was on the research staff of the RAND Corporation in Santa Monica, California (1952–60, 1961–63), where he met Sharpe. He then held various positions with Consolidated Analysis Centers, Inc. (1963–68), the University of California, Los Angeles (1968–69), Arbitrage Management Company, (1969–72), and IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center (1974–83) before becoming a professor of finance at Baruch College of the City University of New York. In 1994 he became a research professor of economics at the University of California, San Diego.

The research that earned Markowitz the Nobel Prize involved his “portfolio theory,” which sought to prove that a diversified, or “optimal,” portfolio—that is, one that mixes assets so as to maximize return and minimize risk—could be practical. His techniques for measuring the level of risk associated with various assets and his methods for mixing assets became routine investment procedures. He also developed a computer language called Simscript, used to write economic-analysis programs.

The CAIA Association
The CAIA Association is a global professional credentialing body dedicated to creating greater alignment, transparency, and knowledge for all investors, with a specific emphasis on alternative investments. A Member-driven organization representing professionals in more than 95 countries, CAIA Association advocates for the highest ethical standards. The organization provides unbiased insight on a broad range of investment strategies and industry issues, key among them being efforts to bring greater diversification to portfolio construction decisions to achieve better long-term investor outcomes. To learn more about the CAIA Association and how to become part of the organization’s mission, please visit https://caia.org/.

The FDP Institute
The Financial Data Professional Institute (FDPI) was established by the  CAIA Association to address the growing need in finance for a workforce that  has the skills to perform in a digitized world where an increasing number of decisions will be data and analytics driven. The Financial Data Professional (FDP) is a global designation for  investment professionals with data science skills.

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Vanguard
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