BMO Capital Markets Awards Advanced Research Scholarship to Top Scholar

York University Ph.D. candidate, Yun Qiao, to receive $20,000 honorarium for her research in quantitative finance

TORONTO , Jan. 13 /CNW/ - Yun Qiao, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at York University, is this year's recipient of the annual BMO Capital Markets Advanced Research Scholarship.

Ms. Qiao will receive a $20,000 honorarium for her research work in Hedging and Asset/Product Allocation Problem for Guaranteed Minimum Withdrawal Benefits (GMWBs). A GMWB is a type of option that annuitants can purchase for their retirement investments. It allows the annuitant the right to withdraw a maximum percentage of their entire investment each year until the initial investment amount has been recovered. This gives them the ability to protect their retirement investments against downside market risk.

"This scholarship award highlights BMO's commitment to education and the importance of supporting advanced research at Canada's universities. Yun's work was one of numerous excellent proposals that we received," said Patrick Cronin , Executive Managing Director and Head of Financial Products and Debt Products, BMO Capital Markets.

"I am very honoured to receive this award for my Ph.D. research. I am excited by the opportunity to collaborate with BMO Capital Markets to further my research in the area of quantitative finance," added Ms. Qiao .

Yun Qiao is currently a 4th year PhD student in the department of Mathematics and Statistics at York University. She graduated with B.Sc. in Applied Mathematics from Nanjing University China in 2004. After moving to Toronto , she continued her education and graduated with a M.A. in Applied Mathematics and Graduate Diploma in Financial Engineering from York University in 2006. Her research area is mathematical finance, specifically probability theory, numerical analysis and their applications to actuarial finance. She is student member of MITACS Finsurance Project.

Last year, Vladimir Surkov, a Ph.D. student at the University of Toronto , was the inaugural recipient of the annual BMO Capital Markets Advanced Research Scholarship.

About the BMO Capital Markets Advanced Research Scholarship

The scholarship program, now in its second year, was launched to advance research in capital markets. Academics and Ph.D. level candidates in mathematics, finance or similar areas were invited to submit research proposals on specific topics, including advanced pricing theory; advanced risk management techniques; advanced trading strategies relating to derivative markets; and market microstructure and trade execution. The award committee was made up of five quantitative analysts for BMO Capital Markets, who all hold Ph.D. degrees. To learn more about the Advanced Research Scholarship program and how to apply, visit http://www.bmocm.com/aboutus/scholarship/default.aspx.

About BMO Capital Markets' support for Education

The Advanced Research Scholarship is part of BMO Capital Markets' commitment to helping provide access to education. The firm also champions Equity Through Education(R), an annual charitable initiative launched in 2005 which directs one day of institutional equity trading commissions to a series of charitable organizations that provide educational opportunities to deserving students. Since its inception, Equity Through Education has raised a total of CAD$8.1 million (US$7.4 million) dollars, assisting more than 2,000 individuals across North America who have directly benefited through scholarships, bursaries and other educational programs.

About BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets is a leading, full-service North American financial services provider, with over 2,200 employees operating in 14 North American offices and 27 worldwide, offering corporate, institutional and government clients access to a complete range of investment and corporate banking products and services. BMO Capital Markets is a member of BMO Financial Group (NYSE, TSX: BMO), one of the largest diversified financial services providers in North America with US $359 billion total assets and more than 36,000 employees as at October 31, 2009 .

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For further information: Media Contacts: Kim Hanson, Toronto, [phone], [email protected]; Internet: www.bmocm.com