Grace College Finance Professor Wins a Top Paper at International Conference

Assistant Professor of Finance at Grace College Dr. Ken McEwan recently presented his research paper, “Financial Impact of Using EUR Call Options to Hedge Accounts Receivables,” at the annual International Conference on Business and Economic Development hosted by the Centre for Business & Economic Research (CBER). The paper won second place out of 80 papers submitted from authors around the globe. It was selected based on originality, adherence to research conventions and scientific rigor.

“The School of Business is excited about Dr. McEwan’s recognition from the CBER,” said Dr. Jeffrey Fawcett, dean of the School of Business at Grace College. “It is always a bonus when hard work and excellence are recognized by other professionals in your field of research,” he said.

The CBER was founded in London with the aim of inspiring, recognizing and supporting excellence in business and economic research. This year, the conference had more than 600 participants from more than 25 countries and more than 70 presentations over three days. In addition to his presentation, McEwan served as session chair for the Finance, Accounting & Organizational Structure session.

McEwan’s paper and presentation were based on a portion of his doctoral dissertation for his Doctor of Business Administration from Liberty University. His final defense was approved in July of 2020.

“I picked the dissertation topic based on my interest in currency options and in the exchange rate marketplace,” said McEwan. “For the research study, I used 10 years of actual option prices and 13 years of Euro and U.S. Dollar currency data. The research shows that the variability of the EUR/USD exchange rate over 60 days is significant enough to consider a hedging strategy. Additionally, using EUR currency options to hedge the exchange rate risk will smooth out cash flow and profits with a cost of less than 1%, ” he said.

McEwan’s research is informed by his 32-year finance career with a global aerospace corporation. His corporate experience includes roles as finance director, vice president of finance and controller. His assignments have included analyzing mergers and acquisitions, developing tactical plans after the September 11 terrorists’ attacks and executing financial strategies for long-term growth and profitability.

McEwan has taught a variety of undergraduate and graduate courses, as finance professor, including finance, accounting and international business. He has worked in the Grace College School of Business for the past eight years.

For more information about the Grace College School of Business, visit www.grace.edu/academics/undergraduate/academic-schools-departments/school-of-business/.