Stephen Zeldes

Frank R. Lautenberg Professor of Economics and Public Policy: Economics Division

Co-director: Richard Paul Richman Center for Business, Law, and Public Policy at Columbia University

Areas of Expertise: Consumer Behavior, Digital Future Initiative, Economy & Policy, Macroeconomics, Social Impact

Contact: Office: 548 Kravis; Phone: (212) 8542492; E-mail: [email protected]

Links: Personal Website; Curriculum Vitae; LinkedIn

Stephen P. Zeldes is the Frank R. Lautenberg Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business. He serves as co-director of the Richard Paul Richman Center for Business, Law, and Public Policy at Columbia University. He served as chair of the school’s Finance and Economics division from 2014-17.

In his research, Professor Zeldes has examined a wide range of applied issues in both macroeconomics and household finance, including consumer borrowing, saving, and portfolio choices, social security, public and private pensions, and annuitization. His research has been published in the leading academic journals. Zeldes and his co-authors were awarded the TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award for Scholarly Research on Lifelong Financial Security (1999).

Professor Zeldes’ recent teaching includes “The Psychology and Economics of Consumer Finance,” “FinTech: Consumer Financial Services,” and "Financial Empowerment Lab NYC." In 2012, he was a recipient of the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence in a Core Course, and in 2013 he received the Dean’s Award for Innovation in the Curriculum.

Professor Zeldes is a Research Associate and director of the Working Group on Household Finance at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Pension Research Council, and a fellow at the TIAA-CREF Institute. Prior to joining the Columbia faculty in 1996, Zeldes was a Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He received his Ph.D. in economics from MIT and his bachelor’s degree in economics and applied mathematics from Brown University.

Education: BS, Brown, 1978; PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1984

Joined CBS: 1996

Featured Research

Should the Government Be Paying Investment Fees on $3 Trillion of Tax-Deferred Retirement Assets?

Authors: Mattia Landoni and Stephen Zeldes

Date: April 1, 2025

Format: Journal Article

Journal: Review of Financial Studies

Under standard assumptions, individuals and the government are indifferent between traditional tax-deferred retirement accounts and “front-loaded” (Roth) accounts. Adding investment fees to this benchmark, individuals are still indifferent but the government is not. We show that under weak conditions firms charge equal percent fees under both systems, yielding higher dollar fees under Traditional. We estimate that tax deferral increases demand for asset management services by $3.8 trillion, costing the government $23.4 billion in annual fees.