Itamar Drechsler

Current Courses (Fall 2025)

• FNCE9370 - Topics In Macro Finance

  This is an advanced course in quantitative theory applied to macro and finance models. It is intended for doctoral students in finance, economics and related fields. The course focuses on four broad theoretical literatures: (i) firm investment and growth; (ii) corporate, household and sovereign debt; (iii) asset pricing in general equilibrium; and (iv) equilibrium macro models with a financial sector. My approach is to develop and discuss in detail a unified framework that is suited to address most topics, usually covering a few central topics and the core papers. We then discuss the more recent literature, highlighting how authors combine and expand upon the core ideas. This part of the course usually relies on regular student presentations.

  FNCE9370001 ( Syllabus )

All Courses

• FNCE1000 - Corporate Finance

  This course provides an introduction to the theory, the methods, and the concerns of corporate finance. The concepts developed in FNCE 1000 form the foundation for all elective finance courses. The main topics include: 1) the time value of money and capital budgeting techniques; 2) uncertainty and the trade-off between risk and return; 3) security market efficiency; 4) optimal capital structure, and 5) dividend policy decisions. ACCT 1010 + STAT 1010 may be taken concurrently.

• FNCE3900 - Advanced Seminar

  The objective of this course is to introduce undergraduates to finance research. It will integrate the work of the various finance courses and familiarize the student with the tools and techniques of research. This research course will give undergraduate students a financial framework that they can build on at Wharton and throughout their career. This Undergraduate Research Fellowship will allow us to broaden our support to our students.

• FNCE6110 - Corporate Finance

  This course serves as an introduction to business finance (corporate financial management and investments) for both non-majors and majors preparing for upper-level course work. The primary objective is to provide the framework, concepts, and tools for analyzing financial decisions based on fundamental principles of modern financial theory. The approach is rigorous and analytical. Topics covered include discounted cash flow techniques; corporate capital budgeting and valuation; investment decisions under uncertainty; capital asset pricing; options; and market efficiency. The course will also analyze corporate financial policy, including capital structure, cost of capital, dividend policy, and related issues. Additional topics will differ according to individual instructors.

• FNCE6210 - Corporate Finance (Half CU)

  This half-semester course serves as an introduction to corporate investments for non-majors. The primary objective is to provide a framework, concepts, and tools for analyzing financial decisions based on fundamental principles of modern financial theory. Topics covered include discounted cash flow techniques, corporate capital budgeting and valuation, investment decisions under uncertainty, and capital asset pricing. The approach is rigorous and analytical but the course will not cover several topics included in the full semester Corporate Finance course, including: market efficiency, corporate financial policy (including capital structure, cost of capital, dividend policy, and related issues), and options.

• FNCE9370 - Topics in Macro Finance

  This is an advanced course in quantitative theory applied to macro and finance models. It is intended for doctoral students in finance, economics and related fields. The course focuses on four broad theoretical literatures: (i) firm investment and growth; (ii) corporate, household and sovereign debt; (iii) asset pricing in general equilibrium; and (iv) equilibrium macro models with a financial sector. My approach is to develop and discuss in detail a unified framework that is suited to address most topics, usually covering a few central topics and the core papers. We then discuss the more recent literature, highlighting how authors combine and expand upon the core ideas. This part of the course usually relies on regular student presentations.

• Brattle Group Prize (Distinguished Paper) for best corporate finance paper in the Journal of Finance, 1970

Knowledge at Wharton

• Understanding the True Costs Behind Credit Card Lending, Knowledge at Wharton - 12/10/2025
• Why Is Your Credit Card Rate So High?, Knowledge at Wharton - 11/3/2025
• Interest Rate Cuts Are on the Way. What That Means for the Housing Market, Knowledge at Wharton - 12/14/2023
• How Banks Could Protect Themselves From Runs, Knowledge at Wharton - 5/30/2023
• Lessons from the Silicon Valley Bank Collapse, Knowledge at Wharton - 3/14/2023