Prizes
Every two years, the Banque de France awards its “Young PhD in Economics Prize, worth €3,000 (or €1,500 each in the case of two winners). In addition, two other young scholars receive a special distinction as nominees for the Prize.
The award aims to encourage original research conducted by young researchers affiliated with French doctoral schools on topics of interest to the Banque de France. It recognizes the best chapter of a PhD thesis in one of the following fields: money, banking, finance, macroeconomics, price and wage formation, growth, productivity and innovation, international economics, forecasting and macroeconomic modeling, climate change, and nature.
Eligibility and Submission (2026 Edition)
For 2026, theses defended in France between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025 are eligible. Candidates are invited to submit the best chapter of their thesis, typically the “Job Market Paper.”
The Prize will be awarded at a conference organized by the Banque de France. Winners will also meet with the Bank’s Executive Board.
The jury consists of three researchers from the Banque de France and three members of the Executive Committee of the Association Française de Science Économique (AFSE).
Applications must be sent to the AFSE secretariat by 1 February 2026, exclusively by email (with acknowledgment of receipt requested), and must include the following PDF documents:
- The selected thesis chapter;
- The pre-defense reports;
- The defense report;
- A summary of the thesis (a few pages) highlighting original, publishable results;
- A CV.
If applying for both the AFSE Prize and the Banque de France Prize, candidates must:
- Clearly indicate in the email subject line the name of the prize (“Prix Banque de France”);
- Submit a complete and separate application for each prize, as the juries are distinct.
Applications should be sent to: secretariatafse@gmail.com and afse@wanadoo.fr.
Previous Winners
In 2024, the Prize was awarded jointly to Pauline Carry (University of Chicago) for “The Effects of the Legal Minimum Working Time on Workers, Firms and the Labor Market” (thesis defended at Institut Polytechnique de Paris) and Noémie Pinardon-Touati (Columbia University) for “The Crowding Out Effect of Local Government Debt: Micro and Macro-Estimates” (thesis defended at HEC Paris). Maxime Bonelli received a nomination for the Young Doctor Prize.
The Banque de France is offering three €10,000 non-renewable doctoral grants to PhD students in economics entering their fourth year and holding an ATER or postdoctoral contract in France.
Two Grants for Female Doctoral Students
These grants aim to foster greater representation of women in academic economics, particularly in macroeconomics and finance. They are designed to support the completion of high-quality doctoral research in areas relevant to central banks, such as monetary economics, financial stability, inflation and wage dynamics, productivity and growth, international economics, and climate and biodiversity economics.
In addition to financial support (paid directly to the recipient), the program offers mentoring by Banque de France economists, access to Banque de France data, and short-term integration into a research team.
Applications should include a CV, cover letter describing the thesis work, a letter of recommendation from the supervisor, and the ATER or postdoctoral contract (if available).
Contact: Bourse_doctorantes@banque-france.fr
One Thematic Grant (m/f)
A third grant is open to all eligible doctoral students. It supports original research on priority themes, including central bank digital currency and digital assets, monetary policy transmission, fragmentation of trade and capital flows, European economic and financial security, artificial intelligence and macroeconomic performance, and climate change and biodiversity.
The grant includes financial support, access to Banque de France data, and short-term integration into a research team.
Applications should include a CV, cover letter outlining the relevance of the thesis to the priority themes, a letter of recommendation, and the ATER or postdoctoral contract (if available).
Contact: BOURSE_DE_THESE@banque-france.fr
Application deadline: 7 April 2026.
The full description of the call for applications is provided below. (lien vers le PDF Banque de France doctoral grants.pdf en PJ)
Previous Laureates
2025 :
Gemma Harris (PSE) works on heterogeneous-agent (HANK-type) models applied to the analysis of the effects of rising public debt on firm creation, under the supervision of Tobias Broer and Axelle Ferrière.
Mathilda Baret (University of Orléans) studies the effects of climate change, the availability of critical metals, and inflation, under the supervision of Camélia Turcu and Yannick Lucotte.
Yann Perdereau (PSE) applies heterogeneous-agent models to monetary policy, climate, and fiscal policy, under the supervision of Gilles Saint-Paul.
2024:
Mathilde Dufouleur is completing her PhD under the supervision of Fabien Tripier (Dauphine). She specializes in macroprudential analysis (non-performing loans) and banking economics.
Naomi Cohen studies risk sharing across euro area countries within a general equilibrium framework, with implications for the Capital Markets Union. Her dissertation is supervised by Xavier Ragot (Sciences Po and OFCE).
Pedram Pourabbasvafa, under the supervision of Olena Havrylchyk and Jean-Bernard Chatelain, conducts research on measuring inflation expectations using textual analysis methods applied to earnings call data. He was also awarded the second prize in the 2023 Bloc-notes Éco competition for his article entitled “Impact of Inflation on Green and Brown Firms and Implications for the Green Transition.”
2011 Since, the Banque de France and the Toulouse School of Economics (TSE) have jointly awarded a series of prizes in monetary economics and finance. These prizes are granted by a joint jury that also includes external academic experts.
Every two years, the BDF-TSE Prize recognize researchers who have developed fundamental concepts that enhance our understanding of monetary economics, finance, and the banking system. The awards celebrate excellence in research that contributes to strengthening the analytical and policy frameworks of central banks.
Since 2018, the Banque de France has awarded an annual Prize for Young Researchers in Green Finance, providing financial support of €3,000 to promote academic research in green finance.
The Prize reflects the Bank’s commitment to advancing research on the role of finance in addressing climate change and biodiversity loss. In line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement, it supports work that improves our understanding of climate-related financial risks and the financing of the transition to a low-carbon economy. The initiative complements the Banque de France’s broader engagement in sustainable finance, including its role in launching the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS).
Eligibility
Applicants must conduct research in green finance, be affiliated with a French academic institution, and either hold a PhD (ideally under 40) or be a PhD candidate with a scheduled defense.
Research Topics
Eligible projects may be theoretical or empirical and focus on climate-related financial risks, green financial products, macroeconomic modeling of climate impacts, the role of central banks, or the interaction between monetary policy and climate change.
Selection Committee
The Prize is awarded by a selection committee composed of internationally recognized scholars in climate finance and related fields.
- Alain Naef (ESSEC Business School)
- Isis Durrmeyer (Toulouse School of Economics)
- Mireille Chiroleu-Assouline (Paris School of Economics)
- Olivier David Zerbib (ENSAE Paris)
- Peter Tankov (ILB & ENSAE)
- Galina Hale (UC Santa Cruz)
- Ben Caldecott (University of Oxford)
- Gauthier Vermandel (École Polytechnique)
To apply for the 8th edition of the Young Researchers in Green Finance Prize, click here.
Mise à jour le 9 Avril 2026