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        Industrial-Academic Workshop 
          on Optimization in Finance and Risk Management
                  October 3-4, 2011 
                    hosted by the Fields Institute, 222 College Street, Toronto, 
                    Map
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                   Organizing Committee 
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                   Antoine Deza, McMaster 
                    University 
                    Matheus R. Grasselli, McMaster University  
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                    Thomas R. Hurd, McMaster 
                      University 
                      Oleksandr Romanko, McMaster University & Algorithmics 
                      Inc. 
                   
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  The workshop is sponsored by Fields Institute, Mitacs and Algorithmics Inc. Informational sponsor 
    of the workshop is Professional Risk Managers' International Association (PRMIA). 
    The workshop is supported by Canadian Operational Research Society (CORS). 
   
  The workshop is organized with support from Fields Industrial Optimization 
    Seminar Series, Fields Seminar 
    Series on Quantitative Finance, PRMIA Risk 
    Management Seminar Series and Mitacs Elevate 
    Postdoctoral Fellowship Program.  
  Introduction
  The recent global financial crisis has made risk management and financial 
    stability a foremost concern of regulatory agencies and corporations worldwide. 
    Given the rapidly expanding scope and complexity of risk-aware management 
    and finance, mathematical innovation is central to the field. Notably, numerical 
    optimization, which, e.g., automates the construction of portfolios that best 
    meet specified requirements, is finding novel uses in the field of finance 
    and risk management. Optimization techniques can serve as one of the tools 
    for financial institutions and companies to find better solutions and improve 
    decision-making.  
  The list of the topics to be covered during the workshop includes, but not 
    limited to: 
  
    - Modeling and optimization in finance and risk management 
 
    - Large-scale financial optimization
 
    - Optimization algorithms and software
 
    - Stochastic optimization
 
    - Robust optimization
 
    - Multi-objective optimization
 
    - Portfolio selection and management
 
    - Modeling different types of risk
 
    - Optimizing risks in risk management
 
    - Asset and liability management
 
    - Asset pricing and index funds
 
    - Capital budgeting and allocation 
 
   
  With many theoretical, numerical and computational advances that have been 
    recently developed in the field of optimization techniques, their potential 
    applicability in finance and risk management remains to be established. The 
    workshop is aimed to bridge the gap between academic research in optimization 
    and practical financial and risk management applications of such techniques. 
    It aims to bring together both academia and industrial practitioners. The 
    third party that panned to be involved are the developers of commercial and 
    open-source optimization solvers and modeling languages that provide the interface 
    between the financial optimization model and its solution to be implemented. 
  Establishing research links between the industry and academia as well as 
    promoting organizations such as Fields Institute and MITACS that support such 
    collaboration is another workshop goal. The idea of transforming this workshop 
    into a regular event will be discussed during the workshop.  
  Format
   
    The workshop will include: 
       
      - Distinguished lectures by leading academic and industrial researchers 
      and practitioners; 
      - Contributed talks on recent research advances; 
      - Postdoctoral fellow/graduate student research poster competition; 
      - Panel discussion "New Trends and Challenges in Using Optimization 
      to Improve Decision-Making in Finance and Risk Management - Industrial Perspective"; 
      - Academia-industry connector and networking event. 
   
  Invited Speakers
   
    John R. Birge, University of Chicago 
      Thomas F. Coleman, University of Waterloo 
      Helmut Mausser, Algorithmics Inc. 
      John M. Mulvey, Princeton University 
      Robert Stubbs, Axioma Inc. 
      Stan Uryasev, University of Florida and American Optimal Decisions 
      Inc. 
   
  Program 
  
     
      | Monday - October 3 | 
     
     
      | 8:30 - 8:50  | 
      On-site registration and coffee | 
     
     
      | 8:50 - 9:00 | 
      Welcome and Introduction | 
     
     
      | 9:00 - 9:50  | 
      John R. Birge 
        Optimal Portfolio Construction with Estimation Error, Non-normal Returns, 
        and Large Numbers of Assets  | 
     
     
      | 9:50 - 11:05 | 
      Contributed presentations (3 talks, 25 minutes each) 
        Gah-Yi Vahn 
        Estimation Error Reduction in Portfolio Optimization with Conditional 
        Value-at-Risk  
        Yang Li 
        On Mean-Variance Analysis of Derivative Portfolio  
        Aurelie Thiele 
        Log-Robust Portfolio Management  | 
     
     
      | 11:05 - 11:30 | 
      Coffee Break | 
     
     
      | 11:30 - 12:20 | 
      Helmut Mausser 
        Bias, Exploitation and Proxies in Scenario-Based Risk Minimization 
          | 
     
     
      | 12:20 - 2:00 | 
      Lunch Break | 
     
     
      | 2:00 - 3:15 | 
      Contributed presentations (3 talks, 25 minutes 
        each) 
        Oleksandr Romanko 
        Multiobjective and Robust Optimization in Finance and Risk Management 
          
        Jonathan Li 
        Portfolio Selection under Model Uncertainty: A Penalized Moment-Based 
        Optimization Approach  
        Thamayanthi Chellathurai 
        Markowitz Principles for Multi-period Portfolio Selection Problems with 
        Moments of Any Order and Wealth Constraints  | 
     
     
      | 3:15 - 4:05 | 
      John M. Mulvey 
        Advances in Portfolio Allocation Models: Lessons from the Past Decade | 
     
     
      | 4:05 - 4:30 | 
      Coffee Break and Networking | 
     
     
      | 4:30 - 5:45 | 
      Contributed presentations (3 talks, 25 minutes each) 
        Iouldouz Raguimov 
        On the Efficiency of Solutions of Stochastic Optimal Control Problem 
        with Discrete Time 
        Qihang Lin 
        Computations of the Risk-Averse Strategies for Optimal Trade Execution 
         
        Bhaskar DasGupta 
        On Vulnerability of Banking Networks  | 
     
     
      | 5:45 - 6:00 | 
      Mitacs presentation | 
     
     
      | 6:00 - 7:30 | 
      Workshop Reception Fields Atrium | 
     
     
      | Tuesday - October 
        4 | 
     
     
      | 8:30 - 9:00 | 
      Coffee | 
     
     
      | 9:00 - 9:50  | 
      Sebastiano Silla 
        Indifference Valuation for Guaranteed Annuity Options Using the Explicit 
        Solution for a Class of Stochastic Optimal Control Problems 
        Harry Zheng 
        On Pricing Basket Credit Default Swaps  | 
     
     
      | 9:50 - 10:40 | 
      Stan Uryasev 
        Risk Quadrangle and Applications in Day-Trading of Equity Indices 
         
        *PDFs of Prof. Uryasev's The 
        Fundamental Risk Quadrangle in Risk Management, Optimization and Statistical 
        Estimation and 
        Protecting Equity Investments: 
        Options, Inverse ETFs, Hedge Funds, and AORDA Portfolios  | 
     
     
      | 10:40 - 11:05 | 
      Coffee Break | 
     
     
      | 11:05 - 12:20 | 
      Tao L. Wu 
        An Equilibrium Model with Buy and Hold Investors 
        Sheran Deng 
        Balance Sheet Adjustment and Post-Crisis Policy Choice  
        Kai Huang 
        Inventory Pricing Schemes of a Newsvendor  | 
     
     
      | 12:20 - 2:00 | 
      Lunch Break | 
     
     
       
        2:00 - 2:50 | 
      Robert Stubbs 
        Factor Alignment Problems in Optimized Portfolio Construction  
       | 
     
     
      | 2:50 - 3:40 | 
      Thomas F. Coleman 
        Risk Management of Portfolios by CVaR Optimization | 
     
     
      | 3:40 - 4:00 | 
      Coffee Break | 
     
     
      | 4:00 - 5:15 | 
      Panel Discussion: New Trends and Challenges in Using 
        Optimization to Improve Decision-Making in Finance and Risk Management 
        - Industrial Perspective 
        Panelists and a Moderator TBA | 
     
     
      | 5:15 - 5:30 | 
      Concluding Remarks 
        Short Q & A Session | 
     
     
      | 5:30 - 6:30 | 
      Academia-Industry Connector and Networking Event 
        Fields Atrium | 
     
   
   Registration and Abstract Submission
  Workshop fee 
   
  
    -  Online registration (till September 29): $50 CAD for students/postdocs, 
      $100 CAD for academia/industry;
 
    - Onsite registration: $75 CAD for students/postdocs, $150 CAD for academia/industry.
 
   
  Abstract submission for contributed talks and 
    posters (submit 
    an abstract)  
  
    -  Submit your title and abstract if you wish to present a contributed talk 
      (25 minutes) or a contributed poster;
 
    - Specify the preferred choice between oral presentation and poster presentation 
      (Note: the organizing committee keeps the right to convert oral presentations 
      into posters if there are not enough slots for contributed talks in the 
      program; contributed oral presentations should be submitted before September 
      20, abstracts submitted after that date automatically become poster submissions).
 
   
  Participation support for students and postdoctoral 
    fellows 
  
    -  Students and postdoctoral fellows can apply for travel support;
 
    - Only participants submitting a contributed talk or a poster are eligible 
      for travel support.
 
     
   
  Registered Attendees, as of September 30, 2011: 
  
     
      | Full Name | 
      University Name | 
     
    
      | Aldossari, Fahad | 
      SAMA | 
     
    
      | Arora, Tushar | 
      Scotia Capital | 
     
    
      | Baek, Sanghoon | 
      University of Ottawa | 
     
    
      | Ben Moshe, Eran | 
      Tel-Aviv University | 
     
    
      | Birge, John R. | 
      University of Chicago | 
     
    
      | Briggs, Jonathan | 
      CPPIB | 
     
    
      | Caia, Claudia | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
    
      | Calitoiu, Dragos | 
      Bank of America | 
     
    
      | Cao, Jinghua | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
    
      | Chang, Lu (Cindy) | 
      University of Waterloo | 
     
    
      | Chellathurai, Thamayanthi | 
      Bank of Montreal | 
     
    
      | Chen, Michael | 
      York University | 
     
    
      | Colak, Pinar | 
      Simon Fraser University | 
     
    
      | Coleman, Thomas F. | 
      University of Waterloo | 
     
    
      | DasGupta, Bhaskar | 
      University of Illinois at Chicago | 
     
    
      | Davison, Matt | 
      University of Western Ontario | 
     
    
      | Deng, Sheran | 
      World Bank | 
     
    
      | Deza, Antoine | 
      McMaster University | 
     
    
      | Dhaliwal, Gurjot | 
      University of Waterloo | 
     
    
      | Draviam, Thangaraj | 
        | 
     
    
      | Fenton, Greg | 
      Axioma Inc. | 
     
    
      | Grasselli, Matheus | 
      McMaster University | 
     
    
      | Guo, Qiang | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
    
      | Hadden, James | 
      University of Western Ontario | 
     
    
      | Haghighi, Maryam | 
      University of Ottawa | 
     
    
      | Hao, Howard | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
    
      | Huang, Kai | 
      McMaster University | 
     
    
      | Hurd, Tom | 
      McMaster University | 
     
    
      | Jackson, Ken | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Kreinin, Alexander | 
      Algorithmics Incorporated | 
     
    
      | Kumar, Manish | 
      Indian Institute of Technology Madras | 
     
    
      | Li, Jonathan Y. | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Li, Yang | 
      Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Liang, Hongfeng | 
      McMaster University | 
     
    
      | Lin, Mao Zhong | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Lin, Qihang | 
      Carnegie Mellon University | 
     
    
      | Mallahi Karai, Keivan | 
      Jacobs University | 
     
    
      | Mallory, Julie | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Marshall, James | 
      University of Western Ontario | 
     
    
      | Martinez, Gabriela | 
      University of Minnesota | 
     
    
      | Mausser, Helmut | 
      Algorithmics Incorporated | 
     
    
      | Metel, Michael | 
      TD Bank Group | 
     
    
      | Moud, Kamyar | 
      New York Univeristy | 
     
    
      | Mulvey, John M. | 
      Princeton University | 
     
    
      | Navaneetha Krishnan, Sathis Babu | 
      Macquaire Bank | 
     
    
      | Ordine, Andrei | 
      Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan | 
     
    
      | Ponnambalam, Kumaraswamy | 
      University of Waterloo | 
     
    
      | Powers, Michael | 
      Mitacs | 
     
    
      | Raguimov, Iouldouz | 
      York University | 
     
    
      | Romanko, Oleksandr | 
      McMaster University and Algorithmics Inc. | 
     
    
      | Rosen, Dan | 
      R˛ Financial Technologies Inc. | 
     
    
      | Salisbury, Thomas | 
      York University | 
     
    
      | Samadov, Maksym | 
      Algorithmics | 
     
    
      | Sawh, Deitra | 
      University of Waterloo | 
     
    
      | Shahbaghyan, Ruben | 
      Bank of America | 
     
    
      | Shen, ShengWei | 
      McMaster University | 
     
    
      | Shupo, Assaf | 
      Bank of America | 
     
    
      | Silla, Sebastiano | 
      Polytechnic University of Marche | 
     
    
      | Smith, Jamie | 
      University of Waterloo | 
     
    
      | Sohrabi, Yousef | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
    
      | Soltani, Kiumars | 
      UBC Okanagan | 
     
    
      | Song, Dong | 
      EDHEC Risk Institute | 
     
    
      | Stubbs, Robert | 
      Axioma, Inc. | 
     
    
      | Thiele, Aurélie | 
      Lehigh University | 
     
    
      | Tsianos, Vasileios | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Uryasev, Stanislav | 
      University of Florida & American Optimal Decisions Inc. | 
     
    
      | Vahn, Gah-Yi | 
      University of California, Berkeley | 
     
    
      | Vaidyanathan, Vijayavani | 
      CGA | 
     
    
      | Verma, Ritesh | 
      H.P University | 
     
    
      | Wang, Lulu | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Wang, Yadong | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
    
      | Wu, Tao | 
      Illinois Institute of Technology | 
     
    
      | Xu, Victor | 
      OPSEU Pension Trust | 
     
    
      | Yung, Otto | 
      University of Toronto | 
     
    
      | Zdanovich, Andrey | 
      Algorithmics Software LLC | 
     
    
      | Zhao, Matthew | 
      OP Trust | 
     
    
      | Zheng, Harry | 
      Imperial College | 
     
    
      | Zhu, Dian | 
      Scotiabank | 
     
   
    
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