Publications

December 1999 (Revised December 2000)
Case

Charles Schwab: A Category of One

By: Stephen P. Bradley and Thomas H. Esperson

Examines Charles Schwab's on-line discount brokerage firm and questions whether or not Schwab has effectively balanced the old and new world of stock trading, and has remained a leader between giants like Merrill Lynch and Internet pure plays like E-Trade. Also looks... View Details

Keywords: Financial Institutions; Banks and Banking; Technological Innovation; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry

December 2007 (Revised December 2021)
Case

The South Sea Company (A)

By: David A. Moss, Eugene Kintgen, Agnieszka Rafalska and Kimberly Hagan

In early 1720, the South Sea Company and the Bank of England were cometing for the right to issue new shares and to exchange those shares for government bons that were then in the hands of the public. The British government had already executed two such debt conversion... View Details

Keywords: Borrowing and Debt; Debt Securities; Stock Shares; Financial Strategy; Bids and Bidding; Business and Government Relations; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; Great Britain

01 Jun 2017
News

Ink: Home Cooking, Secure Retirements, and Restoring Humanity to Finance

largest senior population in the history of the United States. And millions of boomer households are financially unprepared, one extended health crisis, job loss, or traumatic event from insolvency. As individuals facing this situation,... View Details

13 Jun 2012
HBS Case

HBS Cases: A Startup Takes On the Credit Ratings Giants

to by assigning overly optimistic ratings to highly complex and opaque mortgage- and asset-backed securities. The high ratings signaled to investors that the financial instruments had little chance of default, but the burst of the... View Details

Keywords: by Maggie Starvish; Financial Services; Financial Services

18 Apr 2023
Research & Ideas

What Happens When Banks Ditch Coal: The Impact Is 'More Than Anyone Thought'

divestment vs. engagement. Today’s leaders in the finance space face a dilemma: Do they use their financial “seat at the table” to convince a company to become greener? Or do they divest their funds, sending a signal to the company and... View Details

Keywords: by Barbara DeLollis; Financial Services; Financial Services

19 Sep 2011
Research & Ideas

Doomsday Coming for Catastrophic Risk Insurers?

Kenneth A. Froot spends more time thinking about natural disasters than the average business school professor. In addition to the rise and fall of the Dow and the long-term implications of the financial crisis in Greece, he has natural... View Details

Keywords: by Maggie Starvish; Financial Services

Profile

Farah Ahmed

a financial analyst,” says Farah, "so why did I do it? I wanted to gain an understanding of the industry I couldn't get in corporate headquarters." Farah acquired deeper knowledge of the oil industry—and of herself, as well.... View Details

Keywords: Financial Services; Financial Services

October 1999 (Revised July 2000)
Case

MasterCard International: World Championship Soccer Sponsorship

By: David J. Arnold and David Lane

MasterCard must decide whether to renew the sponsorship of the World Cup and other soccer events in light of a 100% increase in the sponsorship fee and a strategic realignment by MasterCard. A rewritten version of an earlier case. View Details

Keywords: Credit Cards; Marketing Strategy; Sports; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry

Student-Profile

Sarah Wolfolds

of Governors where I jumped right into a section investigating Financial Stability and Regulation during the middle of the financial crisis. This time spent working made me realize that the goings on inside... View Details

07 Jul 2020
Research & Ideas

Market Investors Pay More for Resilient Companies

The steep market drop in the early days of the COVID-19 crisis is being used as a laboratory to study the importance of companies investing in stakeholder relations with their employees, suppliers, and customers, and how those investments could be strategic resources... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Financial Services

November 2006
Case

Selling Biovail Short

By: Malcolm P. Baker, Chris Lombardi and Aldo Sesia

Hedge fund SAC Capital and analysts from Gradient Analytics and Banc of America face charges of stock price manipulation from Biovail, a Canadian pharmaceutical company. Gradient and BofA produced negative reports on Biovail's earnings quality. At the same time, SAC... View Details

Keywords: Stock Shares; Investment Banking; Asset Pricing; Financial Strategy; Crime and Corruption; Financial Services Industry; Financial Services Industry; Canada

01 Mar 2017
News

HBX: Reimagining HBS for the Digital Age

team built two platforms. The first platform, launched in 2014, houses HBX Credential of Readiness (CORe) and HBX Certificate Programs. CORe introduces students to business fundamentals through three courses — Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and View Details

September 1994
Case

BayFunds

By: Alvin J. Silk, Lisa Klein Pearo and Jamie Harper

In June, 1994, the Senior Vice President of BayBank's Investment Management Group is preparing a strategic plan for her organization's line of mutual funds. Sixteen months earlier, BayBank, Massachusetts's leading retail bank, had entered the mutual fund business by... View Details

Keywords: Banks and Banking; Marketing Strategy; Brands and Branding; Investment Funds; Product Marketing; Integration; Financial Services Industry

01 Dec 2008
News

The CEO and the Functions of Leadership

a number of categories that will prove important when considering the CEO’s role: Direction: A core function of leadership is setting the strategy for the organization, and setting specific financial goals... View Details

March 2015
Background Note

Multi-Stage Financing of High-Potential Ventures

By: Ramana Nanda

Keywords: Finance; Entrepreneurial Finance; Financial Strategy

2008
Working Paper

How Did Increased Competition Affect Credit Ratings?

The credit rating industry has historically been dominated by just two agencies, Moody's and S&P, leading to longstanding legislative and regulatory calls for increased competition. The material entry of a third rating agency (Fitch) to the competitive landscape offers... View Details

Keywords: Credit; Financial Markets; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Quality; Reputation; Competition; Financial Services Industry

Read Now

August 1995
Teaching Note

State Street Boston Corporation: Leading with Information Technology TN

By: Richard L. Nolan, Donna B. Stoddard and Chiara Francalanci

Teaching Note (5-196-058). View Details

Keywords: Information Technology; Financial Institutions; Transformation; Technology Adoption; Information Management; Competitive Strategy; Financial Services Industry

April 2000
Case

Francisco Partners

By: Josh Lerner and David L. Gallo

Francisco Partners (which focuses on buyouts of high-technology firms) aims to be the largest first-time fund ever raised. The rationales for the fund, fundraising strategy, and partnership terms and conditions are among the topics explored. View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Leveraged Buyouts; Venture Capital; Financial Strategy; Partners and Partnerships; Strategy; Investment Funds; Financial Services Industry