Elias Papaioannou
Alex Knaster Chair in Economics; Professor of Economics; Academic Director, Wheeler Institute for Business and Development
BA (Athens) MPA (Columbia) PhD (London) LLB Bachelor's in Law
Elias is a Professor of Economics at the London Business School, holding the Alexander Knaster Chair, where he co-directs the Wheeler Institute for Business and Development. Elias, a Fellow of the British Academy, also serves as a Managing Co-Editor of the Review of Economic Studies. Elias has been elected to serve as the European Economic Association's Vice-President (in 2026), President-Elect (in 2027), and President (in 2028).
His research covers international finance, political economy, economic history, growth, and development. He has published in leading peer-reviewed journals, including Nature, Econometrica, the Review of Economic Studies, the Quarterly Journal of Economics, the Journal of Political Economy, the American Economic Review, and the Journal of Finance.
His research has been recognised with the 2013 European Investment Bank Young Economist Award, the 2005 Young Economist Award from the European Economic Association, and the 2008 Austin Robinson Memorial Prize from the Royal Economic Society for the best paper published in the Economic Journal. In 2018, Elias received a European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator Grant to conduct research on African economic history.
Professional experience
Joint Managing Editor, Review of Economic Studies (2021–present)
Professor of Economics, London Business School (2016–present)
Academic Director, Wheeler Institute for Business and Development, London Business School (2017–present)
Associate Professor of Economics, London Business School (2012–2015)
Hal Varian Visiting Professor of Economics, MIT Department of Economics (2019–2020)
Visiting Professor of Economics, University of Zurich, Department of Economics and UBS Centre of Economics in Society (2017–2017)
Assistant Professor of Economics, Dartmouth College, Department of Economics (2007–2012)
Visiting Assistant Professor of Economics, Harvard University, Department of Economics (2010–2012)
Economist, European Central Bank, DG-Research, Financial Research Division (2005–2007)
Awards and honours
British Academy, Fellow
European Investment Bank Institute Young Economist Award (2013)
Austin Robinson Memorial Prize, Royal Economic Society (2008)
European Economic Association Young Economist Award (2005)
Richard and Margaret Merrell Foundation Scholar, London Business School PhD Program (2003)
Teaching portfolio
Our teaching offering is updated annually. Faculty and programme material are subject to change.