Nobel in Economics for LBS Honorary Doctor

London Business School (LBS) Dean Sergei Guriev has congratulated Daron Acemoglu (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Simon Johnson (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and James A Robinson (University of Chicago) on winning the 2024 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel (the ‘Nobel in Economics’).

The renowned economists received the Nobel in Economics “for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity.”

All three share ties to LBS.

Daron Acemoglu, Institute Professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, received an Honorary Doctorate from LBS in 2018 and has presented at the School on numerous occasions. He most recently appeared in conversation with LBS Professor of Economics Elias Papaioannou at a 2023 Wheeler Institute for Business and Development (the ‘Wheeler Institute’) event exploring themes from his book, Power and Progress, co-authored with Simon Johnson, Professor of Global Economics and Management at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

James (Jim) A. Robinson, The Reverend Dr. Richard L. Pearson Professor of Global Conflict Studies at the University of Chicago, also contributed to the Wheeler Institute’s 2023 ‘African History through the Lens of Economics’ lecture series, where he and other speakers discussed Africa’s latent assets and future.

Professor Papaioannou, Academic Director of the Wheeler Institute, said: “At LBS and the Wheeler Institute, we are privileged and honoured to be able to call inspirational thought leaders like Daron and Jim our friends. Daron has taught at our PhD programme, has presented multiple times at our seminars, and we have hosted talks and discussions on his thought-provoking books.

“Jim has also joined us on multiple occasions; most recently, he presented at Wheeler Institute's flagship ‘African History through the Lens of Economics’ open-access series, his ongoing work on culture and institutions in Nigeria and West Africa.

“We have been receiving dozens of emails from the 27,000 participants asking us to pass Jim and Daron their congratulations and for initiating a data-driven re-examination of African economic development.”

Dean Guriev offered his congratulations to Professors Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson.

“Daron, Simon, and Jim are all incredibly deserving of this honour. As a political and institutional economist, I am delighted that this prize will create even greater awareness of their invaluable research and their contributions to the field of economics. I am incredibly fortunate to have known Daron, Simon, and Jim for many years and am looking forward to welcoming them again at LBS.”

Professor Acemoglu is also a close collaborator of LBS Professor of Economics Andrew Scott, with whom he has produced several pieces of research, including ‘Asymmetric Business Cycles: Theory and Time Series Evidence’, ‘Asymmetries in the Cyclical Behavior UK Labor Markets’ and ‘Consumer Confidence and Rational Expectations: Are Agents' Beliefs Consistent With the Theory?’

Reflecting on Professor Acemoglu’s distinguished career, Professor Scott said: “I first met Daron when we were both grad students and it was clear from the very first moment he was an exceptional economist.

“We worked together on a range of papers (and have started to do so again recently), and it was always great fun and exciting as the intellectual debate and discussions went in multiple directions. I know of no one like Daron who can combine speed of thought with depth of knowledge and breadth of interest. These have been the hallmarks of Daron’s career, so it is no wonder that he has received the ultimate accolade of a Nobel Prize.

“A great academic who has shaped so much economic research as well as communicated his thinking to a wider world. Great to see a great scholar and a good person honoured in this way.”

LBS has also had the privilege of previously hosting Professor Johnson in his capacity as an External Examiner/Assessor for LBS’s PhD programme in 1999.