Karolin Kirschenmann Appointed as Leibniz Professor
PersonnelJoint Appointment by ZEW Mannheim and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
Professor Karolin Kirschenmann, deputy head of ZEW Mannheim’s Research Unit “Pensions and Sustainable Financial Markets” has been appointed as Professor of Economics with a focus on “Empirical Banking” at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. The appointment, which was made jointly by ZEW and Mainz University, became effective on 5 March 2025.
“I’m very glad to be appointed as Leibniz Professor. With ZEW and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz I have outstanding partners at my side. With their support I’ll be able to further develop my research projects on the role of the financial sector in the green transformation,” says Karolin Kirschenmann.
ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach, PhD comments: “We’re delighted about making this joint appointment together with Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. We’re also very proud that the Leibniz Association is funding this professorship under the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors. Professor Kirschenmann will contribute her highly topical and relevant research on financing the transformation to both institutions and expand on it. We wish her every success.”
Focus on transformation in the finance sector
In her work, Karolin Kirschenmann studies the spread of crises through global banking networks and the consequences for the real economy, as well as the behaviour of depositors in crises. Her latest research projects focus on the role of banks in the transformation towards a CO2-neutral economy. Her research as a Leibniz Professor will also concentrate on this topic. Professor Kirschenmann’s work has been published in renowned journals including Review of Finance, Journal of Financial Intermediation and Journal of Money, Credit and Banking.
Before joining ZEW, she was an assistant professor of finance at Aalto University in Helsinki from 2011 to 2015. In 2011, she obtained her doctoral degree in economics at the University of Heidelberg. As a doctoral student, she completed research visits at the University of Tilburg and at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Karolin Kirschenmann studied business administration at the University of Mannheim and at Hong Kong University.
