IMF RESEARCHER

Sophia Chen

Last Updated: November 3, 2025

Sophia Chen is a Senior Economist at the International Monetary Fund and Associate Editor of the IMF Economic Review. Her research interests include banking, corporate finance, and macro-financial linkages. Her work addresses topics related to financial markets, monetary policy, financial sector regulations, and productivity. It has been published in leading academic journals and policy-oriented outlets, earning recognition such as the Journal of Financial Intermediation Best Paper Award. At the IMF, she has extensive experience in research and policy work, with a focus on macro-financial linkages and financial systems, as well as country and regional economic policies. She has contributed to flagship publications, including the World Economic Outlook and Regional Economic Outlook, and served as a desk economist for European, Latin American, and Caribbean economies. She served as the guest editor of the IMF Research Perspective, an award-winning publication. She received her PhD and MA in economics from the University of Michigan. She holds an MLA from the University of Pennsylvania, and a BArch from Tsinghua University.

Email: YCHEN2@imf.org

Personal WebPage: https://sites.google.com/site/sophiachenecon/

Fluent In: Chinese.

Education:

PhD, University of Michigan

MA, University of Michigan

MLA, University of Pennsylvania

BArch, Tsinghua University


Editorial Activities:

IMF Economic Review, Associate Editor, 2022-present

IMF Research Perspective, Guest Editor, 2020


Work in progress:

“Cyclical Inflation Inequality and Monetary Policy”, with Ting Lan.

“The Nuanced Role of Government Credit on Monetary Policy Transmission”, with Leila Aghabarari, Deniz Igan, and Bernardus Van Doornik.

“Information Disadvantage and Loan Screening: Evidence from the Mortgage Market”, with Yangfan Sun.


Field of Expertise:

Public Finance

Monetary Policy

Macro-Financial Issues

Banking

Open Economy Macroeconomics