Ben Bernanke

Facts

Ben Bernanke

© Nobel Prize Outreach. Photo: Stefan Bladh

Ben S. Bernanke
The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2022

Born: 13 December 1953, Augusta, GA, USA

Affiliation at the time of the award: The Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C., USA

Prize motivation: “for research on banks and financial crises”

Prize share: 1/3

Work

What is the role of banks in the economy and society? What happens if they collapse?
The foundations of modern banking research were laid by Ben Bernanke, Douglas Diamond and Philip Dybvig in the early 1980s. Through statistical analysis and historical source research, Bernanke demonstrated how failing banks played a decisive role in the global depression of the 1930s. Bernanke’s research shows that bank crises can potentially have catastrophic consequences. This insight illustrates the importance of well-functioning bank regulation.

To cite this section
MLA style: Ben Bernanke – Facts – 2022. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach AB 2024. Thu. 12 Dec 2024. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sciences/2022/bernanke/facts/>

Back to top Back To Top Takes users back to the top of the page

Nobel Prizes and laureates

Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.

See them all presented here.

Illustration

Explore prizes and laureates

Look for popular awards and laureates in different fields, and discover the history of the Nobel Prize.