Viral V. Acharya

Viral V. Acharya

Joined Stern 2008

Leonard N. Stern School of Business
Kaufman Management Center
44 West Fourth Street, 9-65
New York, NY 10012

E-mail vva1@stern.nyu.edu
Personal website

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Biography

Viral V. Acharya is the C.V. Starr Professor of Economics in the Department of Finance at New York University Stern School of Business (NYU-Stern). He is a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) in Corporate Finance, a Research Affiliate at the Center for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), and Research Associate of the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI). Viral was a Resident Scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (Sep 2022-Jan 2023) and a Deputy Governor at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) during 23rd January 2017 to 23rd July 2019 in charge of Monetary Policy, Financial Markets, Financial Stability, and Research.

Viral’s primary research interest is in theoretical and empirical analysis of systemic risk of the financial sector, its regulation, and its genesis in government- and policy-induced distortions, an inquiry that also examines the interaction of credit and liquidity risks, their agency-theoretic foundations, and their general equilibrium consequences. In recent work, he has also explored the impact of pandemic and climate-changed related risks. Viral received the Alexandre Lamfalussy Senior Research Fellowship of the Bank for International Settlements in 2017, the inaugural Banque de France – Toulouse School of Economics Junior Prize in Monetary Economics and Finance in 2011, and the Senior Houblon-Normal Research Fellowship at the Bank of England in Summer 2008. He has been a Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researcher, 2020-22, and his articles have won several best paper prizes at journals and conferences.

Viral is currently an editor of the Journal of Law, Finance and Accounting (2014-16, 2020-), a member of the Editorial Committee of the Annual Review of Financial Economics (2022-), and a Board member of the American Finance Association (2024-) and Financial Intermediation Research Society (2023-). He was earlier an editor of the Journal of Financial Intermediation (2009-12), associate editor of the Journal of Finance (2011-14), and a Director of the Western Finance Association (2012-2015). He is presently a Scientific Advisor to the Sveriges Riksbank since February 2024, a member of the Climate-related Financial Risk Advisory Committee (CFRAC) of the Financial Stability Oversight Council for 2023-26, an invited member of the Bellagio Group of academics and policy-makers from central banks and finance ministries since 2021, and a member of the Financial Advisory Roundtable (FAR) of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York since 2020. He is or has been an Academic Advisor to the Federal Reserve Banks of Chicago, Cleveland, Kansas City, New York and Philadelphia, and the Board of Governors, and has provided Academic Expert service to the Bank for International Settlements, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Viral completed Bachelor of Technology in Computer Science and Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai in 1995 and Ph.D. in Finance from NYU-Stern in 2001.

Research Interests

  • Regulation of banks and financial institutions
  • Sovereign debt and international finance
  • Corporate finance
  • Credit risk and valuation of corporate debt
  • Asset pricing with a focus on the effects of liquidity risk

Courses Taught

  • Bankruptcy and Credit Risk (Undergraduate and MBA)
  • Corporate Finance Theory - Part II (Finance PhD Core)
  • Financial History of the US: From the Panic of 1907 to Silicon Valley Bank (Undergraduate and MBA)
  • Nexus of Sovereign and Financial Risks (PhD Elective)

Academic Background

B.Tech., Computer Science and Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology

Ph.D., Finance
New York University Stern School of Business

Related News & Research

Insights from NYU Stern's book, "SVB and Beyond: The Banking Stress of 2023," co-authored by Professors Viral Acharya, Thomas Philippon, Matthew Richardson, Stephen Ryan, Alexi Savov, Philipp Schnabl and Lawrence White, Clinical Professors Richard Berner and Bruce Tuckman and Clinical Professor Emeritus Kermit Schoenholtz are featured: "Silicon Valley Bank Failed One Year Ago. Is the Regional Banking Crisis Really Over?”

Professor Viral Acharya interview: “Wall Street Is More Bullish on India Than Ever—But the Real Story Is About China.”

The Danger of Forgetting the 2023 Banking Crisis.

Research from Professor Viral Acharya is cited: “Where’s the V-Shaped Recovery?”

Joint research from Professor Viral Acharya is spotlighted: “A $1.3 Trillion Debt-Fueled Boom in Deals Faces a Grim New Reality.”

Insights from Professor Viral Acharya’s book, “Quest for Restoring Financial Stability in India,” are referenced: “RBI Refused Rs 2-3 Lakh Crore Transfer to Government in 2018.”

Professor Viral Acharya interview: “Acharya's Wish: RBI Needs to Deliver 4% Retail Inflation Year After Year.”

Professor Viral Acharya interview: “Demand For ₹2-3 Trillion Sparked RBI-Govt Clash, Says Viral Acharya.”

The Triple Punch of Monetary Tightening on U.S. Mortgage Rates.

SVB and Beyond: The Banking Stress of 2023

Nationwide Summer Campaigns Can Plug School Education Gaps.

RBI and Beyond: Review of Dr C. Rangarajan’s Memoir "Forks in the Road."

International Financial System Shakes as US Banks Rush to Boost Capital.

We Need an Action Plan to Deploy India’s Demographic Advantage.

The Case For a Stagflation Stress Test.

Demandable Claims on Bank Liquidity Complicate the Unwinding of Central Bank Balance Sheets.

Quantitative Easing Left the Banking System Vulnerable.

Where Has All the Liquidity Gone?

Professor Viral Acharya Named as Member of New Climate-Related Financial Risk Advisory Committee

The Making of Fallen Angels—and What QE and Credit Rating Agencies Have to Do with It

Areas of Expertise

Economics

  • Federal Reserve Bank/Central bank

Finance

  • Asset Management
  • Corporate Finance
  • Derivatives
  • Financial Regulation
  • Private Equity Funds

Technology, Operations & Statistics

  • ITSolutions
  • Productivity and Performance
  • Social Media