Jens Werner from Germany, MSc in Finance student 2004-05, reached the final stage of the 22nd edition of The Best Thesis in Finance, a prestigious French competition, organized by the National Centre of Finance Professionals. His thesis, supervised by EDHEC professor  Frederic Ducoulombier, earned him a place in the finals.

Mr. Werner thesis Liquidity Discounts in Returns of Investable Hedge Fund Indices was chosen among 131 theses from 72 different educational institutions to participate in the final stage of the competition. It was particularly appreciated by the jury and its president Mr. Michel Pebereau (President of the bank BNP Paribas) who compensated his hard work by giving him a finalist diploma.

The National Center of Finance Professionals is a professional association created in 1957 with the general goals of developing Finance professions and helping people to better understand finance professionals and their contribution to society. The association runs many projects to educate professionals and each year publishes a great number of financial books and studies. Moreover the National Center of Finance Professionals plays the role of a think tank, where professionals meet, create ideas and discuss Finance.

For more than two decades the association has organized the competition for The best thesis in Finance, and in particular categories such as Financial Administration, Financial Information and Financial Analysis. Each year the competition becomes more difficult with an increasing number of participants and bringing together both students and professionals. Talented people are given the opportunity to present their work and win prizes offered by highly respected partners of the competition such as HSBC Private Banking and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The prize for the first place this year was 10.000 € while the total value of prizes was 40.000 €.