---
title: "Thorsten Hens Full Professor for Financial Economics University of Zurich, Switzerland; SAET fellowship 2025"
sdDatePublished: "2026-06-11T20:02:00Z"
source: "https://www.df.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:0562c102-f3ab-4d52-ad95-dfd90ef086ba/CV_Thorsten%20Hens_June_2026.pdf"
topics:
  - name: "economics"
    identifier: "medtop:20000745"
  - name: "scientific research"
    identifier: "medtop:20000735"
  - name: "education"
    identifier: "medtop:05000000"
locations:
  - "Frankfurt am Main"
  - "Aachen"
  - "Cape Town"
  - "Baden"
  - "Hamburg-Mitte"
  - "Christchurch"
  - "Magdeburg"
  - "Bielefeld"
  - "Meiningen"
  - "Weimar"
  - "Kobe"
  - "Freiburg (im Breisgau)"
  - "Interlaken-Oberhasli"
  - "Bergen"
  - "Mainz"
  - "Netherlands"
  - "Elmshorn"
  - "Wuppertal"
  - "Zwickau"
  - "Münster"
  - "Osnabrück"
  - "Meißen"
  - "Jena"
  - "Stuttgart"
  - "Munich"
  - "Bern-Mittelland"
  - "Konstanz"
  - "Innsbruck"
  - "Rudolstadt"
  - "Eisenach"
  - "Halle (Saale)"
  - "Essen"
  - "North Holland"
  - "İstanbul"
  - "Hannover"
  - "Bisham"
  - "Sonneberg"
  - "Wiesbaden"
  - "Görlitz"
  - "Saarbrücken"
  - "Mannheim"
  - "Bexleyheath"
  - "Lörrach (Landkreis)"
  - "Flensburg"
  - "Manchester"
  - "Vienna"
  - "Île-de-France"
  - "Wolfsburg"
  - "Leipzig"
  - "Gotha"
  - "Bremerhaven"
  - "Geneva"
  - "Trier"
  - "Düsseldorf"
  - "Donau-Ries"
  - "Lindau (Bodensee)"
  - "Oxford"
  - "Dresden"
  - "Karlsruhe"
  - "Lübeck"
  - "Dortmund"
  - "San Jose"
  - "Bautzen"
  - "Baden-Baden"
  - "Luzern-Stadt"
  - "Ischia"
  - "Mitte"
  - "Zürich"
  - "Overijssel"
  - "Schleiz"
  - "Beiyuan"
  - "Eisenberg"
  - "Erfurt"
  - "Zug"
  - "Braunschweig"
  - "Lutherstadt Wittenberg"
  - "Bonn"
  - "Kiel"
  - "Heidelberg"
  - "Ravensburg"
  - "Bavaria"
  - "Apolda"
  - "Sydney"
  - "Kyoto"
  - "Köln"
  - "Rajasthan"
---


Thorsten Hens Full Professor for Financial Economics University of Zurich, Switzerland; SAET fellowship 2025

January 2006

Page 1 of 23

June 2026

Curriculum Vitae
Prof. Dr. Thorsten Hens

Department of Finance
Plattenstrasse 32
CH-8032 Zürich
http://www.df.uzh.ch/

Phone
+41 (0)44 63-43706
Email
thorsten.hens@df.uzh.ch
PERSONAL INFORMATION

Date of Birth:
December 19th, 1961
Nationality:
Swiss and German
Marital Status: married, two children

CURRENT RESEARCH INTERESTS

Behavioral Finance, Evolutionary Finance, Sustainable Finance and AI in Finance

ACADEMIC POSITIONS

Current positions

2006 -
Full Professor for Financial Economics, Department of Finance,
University of Zurich, Switzerland.
2001 -
Adjunct Professor for Financial Economics, Department of Finance, Norwegian School of

Economics, Bergen, Norway.

Page 2 of 23

Former positions
2016 - 2026
Adjunct Professor for Financial Economics, Department of Economics, University of
Lucerne, Switzerland.
1999 - 2006
Full Professor for Financial Markets and Monetary Macroeconomics, Institute for
Empirical Research in Economics, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
1996 - 1999
Professor for Economic Theory, University of Bielefeld, Germany.
1999

February - March, Visiting Professor for Economics, CERMSEM, Paris 1, France.
1992 - 1996
Postdoc (C1), Economics Department II (Prof. Werner Hildenbrand), Bonn University.
1993
January – August, Visiting Scholar, Economics Department, Stanford University (USA) .
1988 - 1992
Research Assistant and Lecturer, Economics Department II (Prof. Werner Hildenbrand),
Bonn University.
1984 - 1988
Teaching Assistant, Dept. of Business Administration and Economics Department, Bonn
University.

ACADEMIC DEGREES

1996

Habilitation, Bonn University
1992

PhD, Bonn University (European Doctoral Programme)
1988

Diploma in Economics, Bonn University
1984

Pre-Diploma (equivalent to Bachelor) in Computer Science, Bonn University
1981

Abitur, Engelbert von Berg Gymnasium, Wipperfürth

HONORS

2025
Fellow of the Society of the Advancement of Economic Theory, SAET
2020
Keynote Speech at Swiss Society for Financial Markets Conference, Zurich, March 25th.
2017
Invitation as Panellist of the Arrow Symposium, Stanford, October 9th 2017.
2016
ZKB Best Paper Award of the year 2016,
Swiss Society for Financial Market Research.
2016

“CUREM Teaching Award 2016”, Center for Urban & Real Estate Management.
2001

Invited Session in ESEM 2001 “Evolutionary Finance”.
1992

Prize for the best doctoral dissertation at the University of Bonn, GEFFRUB Society.
1992

Participant of the Winter Symposium, Econometric Society, Tilburg.
1988 - 1989
Bourse d’études du gouvernement de la République Française.

RESEARCH GRANTS
2024

Kyoto University grant No. 24K04781 “Modelling Sustainability in General Equilibrium”.
2020
Fintech Grants by Alpiq, Bitmain and Silicon Valley Foundation

Page 3 of 23

2019
SNSF-grant “Tax incentive and retirement savings in Switzerland” with Kremena
Bachmann from ZHAW.
2018

SNSF-Sinergia grant "Foundations of Successful Financial Decision Making" joint with

University of Basel (leading house).
2017

SIX Swiss Exchange-grant for “Market Micro Structure”.
2016 -
P&K Pühringer Foundation Research Grant “Interdisciplinary Financial Management”
2014
SNSF-grant "Behavioral Finance for Retail Banking" and SNF-grant "Behavioral Financial
Markets".
2013

Hausdorff Trimester, University of Bonn, on the topic of Evolutionary Finance.
2013-
University Research and Priority Program "Financial Regulation", Subproject Financial

Advice.
2012-
Grant of the Institute of New Economic Thinking (sponsored by George Soros) on the

topic of "expectation coordination in financial markets".
2011-
ProDoc-grant PDAMP1 (SNF grant to support Ph.D. students).
2010-
SNSF-grant “Media and Finance”.
2000- University Research and Priority Program "Finance", subproject Behavioral Finance.
2008 - 2012
LGT-Capital Management “Behavioral Finance and Asset Management”.
2008

ASA (Association of Swiss Insurers) “Real Estate Risk”.
2005

Grant of the Gamma Foundation BSI for the paper “A Reward-Risk Perspective on

Prospect Theory: A Solution to the Asset Allocation Puzzle?”.
2001-
NCCR (National Centre of Competence in Research)-FINRISK Project 3 “Behavioral and

Evolutionary Finance”.
2002 - 2005
ESF (European Science Foundation)-Project “Behavioral Finance”.
2001 - 2007
SNB (Swiss National Bank) Grant “Monetary Theory”.
1998 - 1999
DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgesellschaft)-Projekt “Evolution in Financial Markets”.
1994

Fellowship Grant of the European Union (Human Capital and Mobility Programme).

MEMBERSHIP

Ongoing

Fellow of the Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory,

American Finance Association, CFA, Royal Economic Society, Research Fellow Swiss Finance Institute,
European Finance Association, Swiss Society of Economics and Statistics, Swiss Society for Financial
Market Research, Econometric Society, European Economic Association, Member of the Economic
Theory Council of the German Economic Association, Swiss Fintech Innovations.

Finished

Page 4 of 23

Swiss Design Institute on Finance and Banking, Research Fellow of CEPR, Sonderforschungsbereich
303, Bonn University.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

Administrative positions
Ongoing
2010
Vice Head of the Interdisciplinary Research Center, Finreg.
2015 -
International Scientific Advisory Board of the CFA-Society.
2010 -
Head of the Center for Portfolio Management, Department of Banking and Finance, UZH.
2015-
Head of Swiss Fintech Innovations Lab at the Department of Banking and Finance, UZH.
2018-
Member of the Steering Committee, Blockchain Center at UZH.

Finished
2020 - 2025
Vice Director of Department of Finance, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
2009 - 2025
Member of the Directorate of the Department of Banking and Finance, University of
Zurich, Switzerland.
2012-2025
Member of the Steering Committee, University Research Priority Program Finreg at UZH.
2009-2016
Head Member of the Department of Banking and Finance, University of Zurich.
2018-2018
External Member of the University of Geneva hiring committee “Behavioral Philantropy”.
2017-2017
Member of the UZH Selection Committee for NCCR
2016-2017
Member of the UZH employee representation, PABVK.
2013-2016
Member of the Advisory Board of Maastricht University.
2001-2008
 Member of the Council of the Faculty of Economics, Informatics and Business
Administration, University of Zurich.
2010- 2018
Head of the MAS-Real Estate.
2010- 2016
Member of the Council MAS-Finance.
2012 - 2014
Member of the UZH committee on Executive Education.
2001 - 2013
Individual Project Director of “Behavioral Finance” of NCCR-Finrisk.
2001 - 2013
Scientific Coordinator of the Swiss-wide research network (NCCR-Finrisk).
2007 - 2009
Head of the Swiss Finance Institute in Zurich.
2001 - 2008
Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Economics, Informatics and Business Administration,
University of Zurich.
2001 - 2008
Delegate for examinations and admissions of the Faculty of Economics, Information
Technology and Business Administration, University of Zurich.
Ongoing
2017 –
Coeditor of “Digital Finance”.

Finished
2010-2022
Advisory Editor of “Journal of Mathematical Economics”.
2011- 2017
Associate Editor of “Journal of Banking & Finance”.

Page 5 of 23

1990 - 2010
Associate Editor of “Mathematics and Financial Economics”.
2005
Guest-editor, Special Issue “Evolutionary Finance”, Journal of Mathematical Economics.

Referee for
Financial Analyst Journal, Econometrica, American Economic Review, Journal of
Finance, Review of Financial Studies, Review of Economic Studies, Review of Finance,
Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Finance Research Letters, Mathematics and
Financial Economics, Journal of Financial Intermediation, Journal of Banking and
Finance, Economic Theory, Games and Economic Behavior, International Economic
Review, Journal of Economics, Journal of Economic Theory, Journal of International
Economics, Journal of Public Economics, Mathematical Social Sciences, Journal of
Macroeconomics, Macroeconomic Dynamics, Quantitative Finance, Theoretical
Economics, Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, German Economic Review,
Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Journal of Evolutionary Economics,
Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Modern Economics, Computational Economics,
International Review of Finance, Financial Analysts Journal, International Review of
Financial Analysis, The Financial Review, Journal of Business Economics, Journal of
Behavioral Finance, Applied Economics, Financial Services Review, Mankind, BIS-
working papers, Financial Innovation (FINI).

External expert for the evaluation of the universities of
•
Innsbruck
•
Konstanz
•
Luxembourg
•
Maastricht
•
WU-Vienna

Organized conferences and workshops

•
Cultural Economics and Finance Conference, CEF 24, Trier, November 8 to 10, 2024
•
Value Intelligence Conference, UZH, October, 23rd, 2024.
•
Cultural Economics and Finance Conference, CEF 23, Zurich, September 1 to 3, 2023
•
4th FinTech, InsurTech & Blockchain Forum, Zurich, November 19, 2021
•
Cultural Economics and Finance Conference, CEF 20, Trier, November 5 to 7, 2021
•
3rd FinTech, InsurTech & Blockchain Forum, Zurich, November 13, 2020
•
Cultural Economics and Finance Conference, CEF 20, Trier, June 19th and 20th, 2020
•
2nd FinTech, InsurTech & Blockchain Forum, Zurich, November 5, 2019
•
1st FinTech, InsurTech & Blockchain Forum, Zurich, October 24th, 2018
•
Neurofinace Conference, Hertenstein, September 13.-15. 2018.
•
Heuristics in Finance Conference, Hertenstein, March 27th to 29th, 2017.
•
Hildenbrand Symposium June 4th, 2016, Bonn.
•
Experimental Finance Conference, June 22 -24, 2014.
•
Value Intelligence Conference, VIA, Munich, June 2010 – 2013.

Page 6 of 23

•
Financial Industry Strategy Forum, Interlaken, Switzerland, June 2009.
•
9. Schweizer Ökonomentag der OEC Alumni, University of Zurich, September 2008.
•
Seminar “Behavioral Finance for Private Banking”, Zurich, September 2008.
•
Neuro-Finance Symposium at the University of Zurich, July 5-7, 2007.
•
Behavioral Finance Focus Session, European Finance Association, Zurich, August 2006.
•
Value Intelligence Conference, BayernLB, Munich, July 2005.
•
Behavioral Finance Workshop, BSI-Gamma Foundation, Zurich, December 2005.
•
European Workshops on General Equilibrium Theory, Zurich, May 2005.
•
ESF-Workshop, Zurich, September 2004.
•
Annual Meeting of the German Economic Association, Zurich, October 2003.
•
Euroforum-Workshop on Behavioral Finance, Zurich, April 2004.
•
SWX-Workshop on Evolutionary Finance, Zurich, June 2002

TEACHING

University of Zurich:
Financial Aspects of the Blockchain, Finance in Assessment Phase of UZH, Introduction to Financial
Economics, Economic Foundations of Finance, Behavioral Finance and Wealth Management, Portfolio
Management, Fixed Income Markets, Evolutionary Finance, Advanced Portfolio Theory, Undergraduate
Macroeconomics, Introduction to Financial Economics, Theory of the Firm, Monetary Economics,
Introduction to Economics, Undergraduate Microeconomics, Mathematics for Economic Analysis,
International Trade, Evolutionary Game Theory, Stochastics of Financial Markets, Hedge Funds,
Microeconomic Theory, General Equilibrium Theory with Incomplete Markets, Structure of General
Equilibrium Models.

Norwegian School of Economics:
Behavioral Finance and Wealth Management

University of Lucerne:
Financial Markets

Distance Learning University Switzerland:
Financial Markets

Executive teaching (in the previous three years) for
•
UZH
•
MAS-Real Estate UZ