Dave Fernandez

Dave Fernandez leads and oversees emerging research and programmes in Financial Education & Inclusion, Sustainable Finance, Financial Technology, Data & Governance and other areas of Financial Economics driven by market dynamics and macro economic trends. He is regularly invited to speak at industry panels and contributes commentaries for The Business Times (Singapore).

Outside of SMU, he was appointed chair of the Advisory Panel at the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office. Additionally, he sits on the Academic Council at the Impact Economy Foundation and is a member of the Stewardship Discussion Circle at Stewardship Asia.

Prior to returning to academia in 2018, Prof Dave worked as an economist in the private sector at Barclays and J.P. Morgan. He started his career in the public sector, serving as an economist in the administration of President George H.W. Bush and at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Apart from his activities as an economist, he sits on the board of EMpower, a global philanthropy focused on at-risk youth in emerging market countries. He is also a member of Phillips Exeter Academy’s Asia Council and the Exco of the Princeton Alumni Association of Singapore.

Prof Dave holds an M.A. and Ph.D. in Economics from Princeton University where he completed his dissertation under the guidance of Ben S. Bernanke. His undergraduate degree is from the University of Pennsylvania where Robert S. Mariano was his mentor.

Education

• Ph.D. Princeton University, 1994
• M.A. Princeton University, 1991
• B.A. University of Pennsylvania, Cum Laude, 1987
• H.S. Phillips Exeter Academy, 1983