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Research Center

International Finance

The Research Center studies global financial markets and sovereign debt problems in an increasingly multipolar world. We focus on classic research topics in international finance, such as capital flows, the international financial architecture, and sovereign debt and default, and combine this with questions of geoeconomics, thus exploring the interplay of cross-border finance and geopolitical risk.

We address these questions with a wealth of rich, granular data, which we often self-collect from archives and other non-standard sources. Many of our projects take a long-term perspective, drawing on decades or even centuries of data. This enables us to look beyond the past decades of relative stability and peace to an era in which geopolitical tensions, wars and crises were the norm.

Directors

  • Prof. Dr. Sebastian Horn
    Research Director
  • Prof. Dr. Cathrin Mohr
    Research Director
  • Prof. Dr. Christoph Trebesch
    Research Director

Publications

Publication highlights and recent academic publications in citable form:

Go to publication list

  • Project

    The then Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa visits China, 14 - 15 Jul 2015

    China in Africa: Exploring the Consequences for Economic and Social Development

    The research project studies the effects that China’s growing economic engagement has on African economies, and how China’s economic presence is…

  • Project

    Cluster for Economic Research on Africa

    The Cluster for Economic Research on Africa focuses on enterprises and entrepreneurial potential in African markets, trade and investment policy, and…

  • News

    10.12.2025

    Pallets of 155mm artillery ammunition

    Ukraine Support Tracker: Europe fails to offset US aid drop

    New aid allocations in 2025 might drop to their lowest level since the outbreak of the war in 2022. Europe allocated only about EUR 4.2 billion in new…

  • News

    16.10.2025

    Railway construction

    New database brings transparency to Africa’s public debt

    The Kiel Institute for the World Economy presents a major collaborative project: The African Debt Database (ADD)—a globally unique dataset on the…

  • News

    14.10.2025

    soldier standing under the rain near an armoured tank, NATO response force

    Ukraine Support Tracker: Military aid falls sharply despite new NATO initiative

    Military aid to Ukraine saw a sharp decline in July and August 2025, despite the introduction of NATO’s Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL)…

  • 25 Jul

    2025

    Workshop

    Behavioral Economics

    Hybrid / Kiel Institut für Weltwirtschaft, Standort Berlin

  • 17 – 18 Jul

    2025

    China in the Global Economy - 2nd Kiel-Göttingen-CEPR Conference

    Leibniz Association

  • 10 Jul

    2025

    Workshop

    Geoeconomics

    Kiel Institut für Weltwirtschaft, Standort Berlin

  • 22 – 24 May

    2025

    Verein für Socialpolitik

    Annual Meeting 2025 - Standing Field Committee in International Economics

    Kiel Institut für Weltwirtschaft

Team

  • Paulina Alibhai
    Kiel Institute Researcher
  • Lukas Franz
    Kiel Institute Researcher
  • Prof. Dr. Sebastian Horn
    Research Director
  • Johannes Marzian
    Kiel Institute Researcher
  • Prof. Dr. Cathrin Mohr
    Research Director
  • Taro Nishikawa
    Kiel Institute Researcher
  • Michael Porcellacchia, Ph.D.
    Kiel Institute Researcher
  • Prof. Dr. Christoph Trebesch
    Research Director

Fellows

  • Dr. Pietro Bomprezzi
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • Dr. Manuel Funke
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • Dr. Josefin Meyer
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • David Mihalyi
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • Prof. Kris Mitchener, Ph.D.
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • Benjamin Wache, PhD
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • Associ. Prof. Kirsten Wandschneider, Ph.D.
    Kiel Institute Fellow
  • Ivan Kharitonov
    Kiel Institute Junior Fellow