Paul Klemperer

Paul Klemperer is the Edgeworth Professor of Economics at Oxford University. His main interests are the economics of industry, the environment, and auctions. He co-invented the concept of "strategic complements"; developed the theory of consumer switching costs and the "supply function" analysis of electricity markets; and has showed how to apply intuitions and techniques from auction theory in a range of other economic contexts, from finance to political economy. He has also developed new auction designs including the Product-Mix Auction which is regularly used by the Bank of England; the Governor, Mervyn King, described it as "a marvellous application of theoretical economics to a practical problem of vital importance". He has advised numerous governments, including devising the UK government's "3G" mobile-phone license auction that raised £22.5 billion, and assisting the US Treasury in the recent financial crisis. He was a Member of the UK Competition Commission. He is a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and of the Argentinian Economic Association; is a Fellow of the British Academy, of the Econometric Society, and of the European Economic Association; and is past or present Editor or Associate Editor of 12 economics journals. He has a BA in Engineering (1st Class Honours with Distinction) from Cambridge University, and an MBA (Top Student Award) and PhD from Stanford University.