Mei Li

Biography

Areas of Specialization: banking, financial stability, financial regulation, international finance, and information in Macroeconomics

Mei Li joined the Department of Economics at the University of Guelph in 2007. She received a BA and MA in International Economics from Wuhan University, and an MA and PhD both in Economics, from Queen's University.

Her work has been published in journals including Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, Journal of Financial Intermediation, Journal of Financial Services Research, Canadian Journal of Economics, Oxford Economic Papers, and China Economic Review. She is currently working on speculative capital in foreign exchange markets, BigTechs in financial intermediation, and central bank digital currency.

Dr. Mei Li is an associate professor in the Department of Economics and Finance specializing in banking, financial stability and international finance. Her research has been published in leading journals such as the Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, the Journal of Financial Intermediation, and the Canadian Journal of Economics. Currently, she is investigating speculative capital in foreign exchange markets, BigTechs in financial intermediation, and central bank digital currency.

In the paper titled “Information Advantages, Excessive Risk-Taking, and Capital Regulation for BigTechs in Financial Intermediation,” Dr. Li and her coauthor, Junfeng Qiu, examine optimal capital regulation policy for BigTech firms in financial intermediation. The growth of BigTech firms in finance represents a significant recent development in financial markets. However, established regulations targeting BigTech firms are lacking due to their relatively recent entry into the financial sector. This paper establishes formal models to provide theoretical guidance for regulating BigTech firms' capital.

The key takeaway is that better information does not eliminate BigTech firms' incentive for excessive risk-taking. In certain circumstances, more advanced information technology may even exacerbate their risk-taking behavior. BigTech firms might use their superior information to identify and invest in socially inefficient risky projects for their own benefit, leading to severe resource misallocation. Capital regulation is highlighted as an effective tool to curb this incentive, ensuring that BigTech firms' better information promotes efficient resource allocation and improves social welfare.

Dr. Li's research provides critical insights into the complexities of regulating BigTech firms in financial markets. Her work emphasizes the need for strategic capital regulation to mitigate the risks associated with excessive risk-taking and to enhance the overall stability and efficiency of the financial system.

Li, Mei. (2023). Market expectation management and renminbi exchange rate policy under depreciation pressure. China Economic Journal, 16(1), 63 79. https://doi.org/10.1080/17538963.2022.2042066

Mei Li, and Junfeng Qiu, 2023, "Information advantages, excessive risk-taking, and capital regulation for BigTechs in financial intermediation," China Economic Review, vol. 80.

Mei Li, 2023, "Market expectation management and renminbi exchange rate policy under depreciation pressure," China Economic Journal, 16(1), 63-79.

Mei Li, Frank Milne, and Junfeng Qiu, 2022, "Central bank screening, moral hazard, and the lender of last resort policy," Journal of Banking Regulation, vol. 23(3), pages 244-264.

Mei Li, Frank Milne, and Junfeng Qiu, 2019, "The LOLR Policy and Its Signaling Effect in a Time of Crisis", Journal of Financial Services Research. (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10693-019-00324-6)

Mei Li, Frank Milne, and Junfeng Qiu, 2016, “Uncertainty in an Interconnected Financial System, Contagion, and Market Freezes”, Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, 48 (6), 1135-1168. (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/doi/10.1111/jmcb.12329/epdf)

Mei Li and Junfeng Qiu, 2013, “Speculative Capital Inflows, Adaptive Expectations, and the Optimal Renminbi Appreciation Policy”, China Economic Review, 25, 117-138. (http://ac.els-cdn.com.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/S1043951X12000612/1-s2.0-S1043951X12000612-main.pdf?_tid=3cb99f66-6999-11e6-b018-00000aab0f27&acdnat=1472001935_dbac6a96e8b848d2472083f9be72e4d6)

Mei Li, 2012, “Coordination Failure in Investment, Economic Growth, and Volatility,” The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics: Vol. 12: Iss. 1 (Topics), Article 7. (http://journals1.scholarsportal.info.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/pdf/21946116/v12i0001/nfp_cfiiegav.xml)

Mei Li and Junfeng Qiu, 2011, “Endogenous Inflows of Speculative Capital and the Optimal Currency Appreciation Path”,Canadian Journal of Economics, 44 (1), 364-379.(http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/doi/10.1111/j.1540-5982.2010.01636.x/epdf)