Tara Bhandari

Principal Financial Economist, Office of Corporate Finance (DERA)

Education Summary

  • Ph.D. Finance, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2013
  • B.S. Economics, University of Pennsylvania, 2002
  • B.A.S. Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, 2002

Fields of Interest

  • Government policy and regulation
  • Corporate governance
  • Investor disagreement

  • Financial Economist

    Division of Economic and Risk Analysis

    U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

    2013–present
  • Investment Banker

    Goldman Sachs & Co.

    2002-2005

Tara Bhandari, Peter Iliev, and Jonathan Kalodimos, 2021, Governance Changes through Shareholder Initiatives: The Case of Proxy Access, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis 56(5): 1590-1621.

  • Bhandari, Tara, Differences of Opinion and Stock Prices: Evidence from Spin-Offs, Mergers, and Closed-End Funds.
  • Bhandari, Tara, Making the Most of Good Times: Shareholder Rights and Performance Revisited.

  • Discussant, American Finance Association (AFA) Annual Meeting, 2019

  • Paper presentation, American Finance Association (AFA) Annual Meeting, 2017

  • Paper presentation, Western Finance Association (WFA) Annual Meeting, 2017

  • Discussant, Western Finance Association (WFA) Annual Meeting, 2015

  • Paper presentation, American Law and Economics Association (ALEA) Annual Meeting, 2017

  • Paper presentation, Conference on Financial Market Regulation (CFMR), 2017

  • Discussant, Financial Intermediation Research Society (FIRS) Annual Meeting, 2017

  • Panel, University of Michigan Future of Fintech Conference, 2024

  • Discussant, University of Delaware Corporate Governance Symposium, 2024

  • Additional presentations detailed in CV

Last Reviewed or Updated: April 18, 2025