FINRA Funds Disclosure Research

The FINRA Investor Education Foundation has granted $432,850 to the National Bureau of Economic Research to examine whether disclosure can help investors better evaluate risks and fees.

Called “Managing Risk and Minimizing Fees,” the research, through three individual studies, will examine how to help investors better examine risk, particularly in the context of their overall portfolio and time horizon, and how fees impact investment returns.

“There are many factors to consider when making investment decisions,” said FINRA Foundation Chairman Mary L. Schapiro. “By funding this research, it is our hope that more investors will be able to take informed, active roles in managing their financial futures.”

Harvard University Economics Professor David Laibson added: “This research extends beyond the limitations of a simulated, laboratory environment by increasing the monetary stakes and investing real-world assets over the course of one year. This format should more accurately reflect the large-stakes choices made by investors in the real world.”

To date, the FINRA Foundation has approved $10.4 million in grants and $10.2 million in direct investor education programming.