2026 CISDM
10:15 am – 6:00 pm
The Center for International Derivatives and Security Markets (CISDM), hosted at UMass Amherst, is shaping the future of alternative finance. Join colleagues at this gathering of professionals in the industry for this full day event to address current issues in Finance.
Keynote Speaker:
Andrew Lo
Charles E. and Susan T. Harris Professor, MIT Sloan School of Management and the
Director, MIT Laboratory for Financial Engineering
Andrew W. Lo is the Charles E. and Susan T. Harris Professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management, the director of MIT’s Laboratory for Financial Engineering, and a principal investigator at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab. He received a BA in economics from Yale and an AM and PhD in economics from Harvard. His most recent research focuses on evolutionary models of investor behavior and financial market dynamics, quantifying the financial costs and benefits of impact investing, applying financial engineering and data science to develop new funding and payment models for “hard tech” sectors such as biotech and fusion energy, and developing applications of large language models and generative AI for providing trusted advice. He has published extensively (see http://alo.mit.edu) and his most recent book is The Adaptive Markets Hypothesis: An Evolutionary Approach to Understanding Financial System Dynamics. He has received numerous awards including being named one of Time Magazine’s “100 most influential people in the world.”
Conference Focus
A practitioner-oriented conference examining how geopolitical risk affects asset allocation, portfolio construction, crisis protection, inflation exposure, and market outcomes. The program combines academic research, practical investment perspectives, and a forward-looking discussion of geopolitical risk and U.S. election scenarios.
Program Sessions Will Include:
- Registration, Coffee, and Networking - 10:15 a.m.
- Welcome and Opening Remarks: Mila Getmansky Sherman, CISDM Director, UMass Amherst - 10:45 a.m.
- Keynote Address: Deep-tech and Global Competition, and the Future of Capital Allocation: Andrew Lo, MIT Sloan School of Management - 10:55 a.m.
- Crisis Alpha, Inflation, and Geopolitical Risk: Kathryn Kaminski, Chief Research Strategist and Portfolio Manager, AlphaSimplex - 11:50 a.m.
- Lunch - 12:25 p.m.
- How Mutual Fund Managers Respond to Geopolitical Shocks: Marco Machiavelli, UMass Amherst - 1:15 p.m.
- Global Realignment and its Implications for Diversification and Asset Allocation: Mila Getmansky Sherman, UMass Amherst - 1:45 p.m.
- Break - 2:10 p.m.
- Panel: What Should Investors Do Now? Portfolio Strategy Across Geopolitical and Macro Scenarios: Gary Cameron (Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Garda Capital Partners), Kathryn Kaminski (Chief Research Strategist, AlphaSimplex), Neil Moriarty (Senior Managing Director, MacKay Shields), Kevin Young (Professor, UMass Amherst); moderated by Kristen Walters (Partner, Agilion Systems) - 2:30 p.m.
- 2026 Midterms: Scenarios, Policy Shifts, and Market Implications: Raymond La Raja, UMass Amherst - 3:45 p.m.
- Closing Remarks - 4:15 p.m.
- Networking Reception - 4:30 p.m.
(Program subject to change)
Meet the Speakers
Invest in the Future of Alternative Investments
For more than two decades, the Center for International Securities and Derivatives Markets (CISDM) at Isenberg School of Management has been a leader in alternative investments, derivatives, and risk management.
Your support helps CISDM advance research, provide students with hands-on experiences, and strengthen connections between Isenberg and the investment industry.