Macroeconomics and Public Finance
Monetary Economics and Digital Money
Financial Economics and Financial Markets
FinTech and Digital Public Infrastructure
Artificial Intelligence and Technology Policy
Applied Econometrics and Public Policy
- vidhu.shekhar@spjimr.org
Vidhu Shekhar
Associate Professor, Finance and AccountingVidhu Shekhar is Associate Professor of Finance and Accounting at SPJIMR. A financial economist, his research and policy work spans macroeconomics, public finance, monetary systems, financial markets, fintech, digital public infrastructure, artificial intelligence and technology policy. He holds a Ph.D. in Financial Economics from IIM Calcutta, an MBA from IIM Calcutta, and a B.Tech. (Hons.) from IIT Kharagpur. Prior to academia, he spent six years across investment banking, private equity and hedge-fund investing. His recent research includes work on central bank digital currencies, fiscal policy, inflation, inequality, digital welfare architecture, economic measurement and AI. He also serves as Series Editor of the SPJIMR Paper Series.
Education
Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta
Ph.D. 2018
Focus: Financial Economics, International Capital Flows, Global Financial Markets, International Finance
Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta
MBA, 2006
Major: Finance and Systems
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur
B.Tech (Hons), 2004
Major: Aerospace Engineering
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Research interests
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Selected publications
Shekhar, V., & Ramesh, S. (2026). CBDC design in general equilibrium: Adoption thresholds, bank intermediation, and the feasibility frontier. International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2026.105954
Shekhar, V. (2026). India has several growth engines. Business Standard. https://www.business-standard.com/amp/opinion/columns/india-has-several-growth-engines-126090401448_1.html
Shekhar, V., & Ramesh, S. (2025). Central Bank Digital Currency in India: Perspectives on design choices and implications of e-Rupee. Financial Services Review, 33(3). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.61190/fsr.v33i3.4154.
Shukla, R.G., Agarwal, A., Shekhar, V. et al. A Fuzzy Approach to Assess Blockchain for Sustainable Transformation of Healthcare. SN COMPUT. SCI. 5, 44 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42979-023-02331-w.
Shukla, R. G., Agarwal, A., & Shekhar, V. (2021). Leveraging Blockchain Technology for Indian Healthcare system: An assessment using value-focused thinking approach. Journal of High Technology Management Research, 32(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hitech.2021.100415.
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Books/Book chapters
Kiran Kumar, K. V., & Shekhar, V. (2025). Fintech: Concepts and practice. SYBGEN Learning India Private Limited.
Shekhar, V., & Baag, P. (2025). Blockchain for business applications: From cryptographic principles to business integration. SYBGEN Learning India Private Limited.
Vidhu Shekhar, Kiran Kumar KV, Sumit Jha and Pankaj Baag, (2024). FinTech for managers: A handbook. SYBGEN Learning.
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Conferences
Shekhar, V., and Ramesh, S., E-rupee dynamics – Design and macro implications on the Indian payment ecosystems: An overview. Paper presented at the 2024 International Society for the Advancement of Financial Economics Thailand Conference, Pattaya, Thailand. (July 8–10, 2024)
Shekhar, V. and Chandnani, S. U., From the Central Bank to the Monetary Policy Committee: Has the communication effectiveness improved? NSE Centre for Behavioral Science in Finance, Economics, and Marketing. (April 9, 2021)
Shekhar, V., ISDSI, Is Money Endogenous? Evidence from “High Frequency” Bank Lending Behavior in India, SPJIMR, Mumbai. (December 30, 2018)
Shekhar, V., Haldar, A., ISDSI, “Regionality of Financial Sentiments and Words,” SPJIMR, Mumbai. (December 30, 2018)
Shekhar, V., World Communication Forum, Davos, “Economics Humanity and Communication,” WCF, Davos. (March 2016)
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Paper series
Shekhar, V. (2026). Can AI smell (yet)? Anticipatory judgment, gap closure, and the Lovelace objection. Working Paper, SPJIMR Paper Series, WP-2026-15. S.P. Jain Institute of Management & Research (SPJIMR). https://www.spjimr.org/paperseries/wp-2026-15/
Talwar, S., Shekhar, V., & Roy, A. (2026). Artificial Intelligence in investing: Adoption, systemic risk, and the question of who sets the price. SPJIMR. https://www.spjimr.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/artificial-intelligence-in-investing-adoption-systemic-risk-and-the-question-of-who-sets-the-price.pdf
Shekhar, V., & Mukhopadhyay, S. (2026). Post-fiscal inequality in India: Constructing a lived income Gini, 2014–2025. SSRN. dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6554558
Shekhar, V. (2026). Programmable fiscal instruments for welfare delivery: The case for Annapurna coin and a welfare digital public infrastructure in India. SPJIMR. https://www.spjimr.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/programmable-fiscal-instruments-for-welfare-delivery-the-case-for-annapurna-coin-and-a-welfare-digital-public-infrastructure-in-india.pdf
Shekhar, V. (2026). Inflation outcomes across Indian prime ministers: A comparative analysis, 1947–2025. SPJIMR. https://www.spjimr.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/inflation-outcomes-across-indian-prime-ministers-a-comparative-analysis-1947-2025.pdf
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Popular press
Shekhar, V. (2026). Why Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a real fiscal hawk. Punjab Kesari.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Quietly, BRICS starts assembling a new trade finance system. Think BRICS.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Quietly, BRICS starts assembling a new trade finance system. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). But where is India’s economic growth? The Statesman.
Shekhar, V. (2026). But where is Indian economic growth? Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Another statistical exercise in belittling India’s growth story. Financial Express.
Shekhar, V. (2026). The path to economic power runs through a weaker rupee. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Military financing is a must for science and innovation in India. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). The ghosts of 1991 are biting the rupee. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Do the GDP overestimation claims of India’s former CEA stand up to statistical scrutiny? Mint.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Tech innovation fuels growth, across economic cycles. Forbes India.
Shekhar, V. (2026). The myth of India’s extreme inequality: What the data gets wrong. The Economic Times.
Shekhar, V. (2026). From chai to corridor: Assam’s quiet economic transformation deserves national attention. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Defence outlays rise amid mounting debt. Deccan Herald.
Shekhar, V. (2026). AI in finance: At the borders. DSIJ, Dalal Street Investment Journal.
Shekhar, V. (2026). The GDP of India’s housewives. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Synchronous metal rallies and their link to financial crises. TechCircle.
Shekhar, V. (2026). PM Modi’s inauguration strategy. The Pioneer.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Modi in Israel, Xi before Ukraine: Signalling before wars. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Budget 2026: Rock steady and gearing for global uncertainty. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). INSV Kaundinya: A live floating historical argument. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Tackling US tariff shock with a monetary toolkit. The Hindu Business Line.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Military Keynesianism takes hold as world economy runs out of options. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2026). Metals are flashing a late-cycle warning investors should not ignore. The Statesman.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Is India’s tax system ready for the creator economy? VCCircle.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Trump’s ‘God complex’ and its consequences. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). India’s macro miracle: Understanding the country’s broad growth with low inflation. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). US Fed and Bank of Japan are trapped in a prisoner’s dilemma: On the edge of global financial crisis. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). The “Rahul Goebbels” phenomenon. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Game theory shows one nation one election could transform India’s political stability. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). A great global financial crisis brewing. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Heterodox economics and the RSS. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). West Bengal has 1.04 crore excess voters as per this demographic reconstruction research. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). For too long, RBI hasn’t rewarded government’s fiscal discipline. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Monetary sovereignty in chains: The Fed’s grip on global central banks. Dalal Street Investment Journal.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Bihar has 77 lakh excess voters as per this demographic reconstruction research. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). RBI’s lost decade: How unnecessarily expensive capital dwarfed Indian growth. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). RBI rate cuts: What took so long to back a reforming India? Dalal Street Investment Journal.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Farmer suicides fell in J&K after 2019: What it says about mandi monopoly. Business Standard.
Shekhar, V. (2025). China’s Indo-Pak war games and India’s strategic siege of Pakistan. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). British-imposed Indian ‘surnames’: The colonial construct in personal identity. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). De-hyphenation and India’s geopolitical climb up as a global pole. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Linking Kazan to US tariffs: Geopolitical bifurcation of global trade and finance. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). US-China trade war — Déjà vu of 1980s US-Japan trade war? Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). China’s deep economic crisis — And a trade war it can’t win. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2025). Why new US tariffs might hit Chinese factories more than American wallets. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V., (2024). A BRICS effort is underway to undo SWIFT monopoly — can it work? Swarajya.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Data vs perception: Debunking myths about India’s GST burden. The Free Press Journal.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Taxing truths: Decoding appropriate GST shares. The New Indian Express.
Shekhar, V., (2024). The global importance of the Bank of Japan and Japanese politics. Forbes India.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Budget 2024-25: All the great stuff that Got Buried under excessive tax focus. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2024). What can AI not do, yet? Express Computer.
Shekhar, V., (2024). 2024 Elections: The last stand of Congress. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Opposition’s weaponised questioning aims to destroy credibility of institutions but could cause greater damage. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Real direct benefit – The silent wave of Modi schemes in 2024 elections. OpIndia.
Shekhar, V., (2024). The yet underestimated impact of Modi schemes. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V., (2024). How can Indian startups carve a niche in Gen AI space. Financial Express.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Surpassing predecessors: ‘Mehengai’ disappears from election campaigns as inflation in India reduces to the lowest during Narendra Modi’s term among all PMs. OpIndia.
Shekhar, V., (2024). Anna Yojana is Modi’s pragmatic alternative to universal basic income. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V., (2024). “Data reveals Modi has best record on inflation among all Prime Ministers”. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V. (2024). PM Modi’s war on corruption: Wielding culture, governance and ED as potent weapons. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V., (2024). How cashless payments are restructuring the Indian economy. Canvas 8.
Shekhar, V. (2024). The great onslaught of generative AI on IT services and SaaS model. Express Computer.
Shekhar, V. (2023). BJP’s 2023 state elections’ success sends global signals, shapes expectations for 2024. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V. (2023). Petro-Yuan or Petro-BRICS: The need for better alternative reserve currencies to break dollar dominance. Forbes India.
Shekhar, V. (2020). How APMC Monopoly Is The Core Reason For Farmer Suicides In India. Swarajya.
Shekhar, V. (2019). Indian Politico-Economic Narrative and Scale Of PM Modi’s “Real” Direct Benefit Programmes Point To A Bigger-Than-2014 Majority. Swarajya Magazine.
Shekhar, V. (2017). Assessing Demonetisation: Minsky Provides the Link That Traditional Economics Misses. Swarajya Magazine.
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Management Practice Insights (MPI)
Shekhar, V., & Sanjogita, R. (2025). Navigating the dark side of fintech: A developer perspective. Management Practice Insights (MPI). https://mpibyspjimr.org/articles/navigating-the-dark-side-of-fintech-a-developer-perspective
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Featured in
India, China, Canada and more: 10 countries still under Trump’s tariff squeeze and why. The Times of India. August 2026.
On the frontlines: How Indian sailors are paying the price in Middle East war. The Times of India. August 2026.
Global economy’s dangerous new path: Military Keynesianism. BRICS Business and Think BRICS. March 2026.
Prof. Shekhar attends pre-budget consultation chaired by Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, in New Delhi. Read the full article in Mint.
A study on electoral roll inflation in the Indian state of West Bengal, co-authored by Prof. Shekhar, has been cited in The Telegraph’s article, “Why is SIR needed in Bengal?” Study estimates the presence of around 1 crore excess voters in rolls.
Life in the time of solitude. The New Indian Express. October 2025.
GST relief gives education a tax-free boost. BW Education. September 2025.
Global economic shifts that will impact YOUR future! Think BRICS. February 2025.
Can blockchain technology end NEET-like paper leaks? News18. July 2024.
How Olive manages Japanese people’s cashless confidence. Canvas8. July 2024.
Podcast: Investing in an uncertain and changing world. Desi Fire Podcast. May 2024.
After a rough ride in 2020, India’s banking system faces a litmus test this year. Quartz India. January 2021.
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Courses
Corporate Finance
FinTech and Blockchain
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Awards and honours
Bharat Chamber of Commerce Medal, IIM Calcutta/ Bharat Chamber of Commerce. (April 2006).
Proficiency Prize, IIT Kharagpur. (April 2004).
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Teaching interest
Financial Economics
Behavioural Finance
FinTech
Corporate Finance
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Work experience
S. P. Jain Institute of Management & Research, Mumbai.
Associate Professor, Finance and Accounting (February 2026 – present).
Assistant Professor, Finance and Accounting (January 2018 – January 2026).
Administrative assignments
SPJIMR Paper Series, (2026 – present).
Series Editor
Centre for Financial Services, SPJIMR (1 July 2019 – 1 July 2023).
Associate Head
Mizuho Securities, Mumbai. (March 2012 – June 2012).
Assistant Vice President
QVT Financial LP, Delhi. (June 2010 – August 2011).
Investment Analyst
Intellicap Advisors, Mumbai. (April 2009 – April 2010).
Senior Associate
New Vernon Capital, Mumbai. (August 2007 – March 2009).
Associate, Private Equity
Edelweiss Capital Limited, Mumbai. (August 2006 – August 2007).
Associate – Investment Banking
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MDPs/FDPs
Mahindra and Mahindra Limited, F&A Excellence Track (August 2025).
Open MDP, Leadership Development Programme-Batch 7 (January 2025).
State Bank of India, Leadership Development Programme -Batch 8 (January 2025).
State Bank of India-Batch 7, Leadership Development Programme (January 2025).
State Bank of India, Leadership Development Programme -Batch 4 (December 2024).
CK Birla Group, AdvantEdge Finance – Leading Business into the Future of CK Birla Group (December 2023).
Management/Executive Development, Voltas Limited, 19 participants. (September 20, 2019).
Management/Executive Development, Voltas Limited, 25 participants. (February 4, 2019 – February 8, 2019).
Certificate Programme, Fintech and Blockchain, 80 Participants. (July 21 – February 22).
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Board memberships
Vitt.ai
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Professional service
Committee Member, Fellowship Programme and Research Committee, IIM Calcutta. (August 2015 – June 2016).
Committee Member, Student Council, IIM Calcutta. (November 2013 – November 2014).
Committee Member, Student Council, IIM Calcutta. (November 2012 – November 2013).
Faculty Co-ordinator, SPJIMR – ADMAP – Finance Committee. (January 7, 2020).
Speaker and Faculty Co-ordinator, SPJIMR’s Centre for Financial Services and Vanderbilt University Law School, University in Nashville, Tennessee. (December 12, 2019 – December 14, 2019).
Workshop Organiser, SPJIMR, Mumbai, Maharashtra. (November 26, 2019).
Workshop Organiser, SPJIMR, Mumbai, Maharashtra. (November 10, 2019).