Did banks underreport losses and delay disclosures during the financial crisis? This is the question Christian Laux looked into in his most recent study. Politicians, regulators, and pundits have called out banks' financial reporting as the root of the problem in the 2008–2009 financial crisis and have called for changes. But is the criticism really justified? He and his co-authors examine international banks’ disclosures and recognition of losses during the financial crisis.

Christian Laux is a professor at WU’s Institute for Finance, Accounting and Insurance. He earned his doctorate from Goethe University Frankfurt and his venia docendi from the University of Mannheim. Before coming to WU, he was a professor at Goethe University Frankfurt. He has spent time as a visiting researcher at Harvard University, the London School of Economics, the Wharton School, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

In his research, Christian Laux investigates the role of incentive and information problems in the design of financial and insurance contracts, managerial incentives, and accounting systems. In his current work, Christian Laux is focusing on the role of accounting and regulation for the stability of financial systems and the behavior of banks. His work has been published in leading international journals, including the Journal of Financial Economics, Review of Finance, the Journal of Accounting Research, The Accounting Review, Accounting, Organization and Society, Management Science, Rand Journal of Economics, and the Journal of Economic Perspectives. Christian Laux is a member of the editorial and advisory review board of The Accounting Review and the Scientific Committee of the UniCredit Foundation. He has also been a member of the Executive Committee of the European Finance Association.

We are pleased to honor Christian Laux as our December Researcher of the Month. Watch the video to find out more about Christian Laux’s research work.