Dr. Newman is a Professor of Finance and FinTech at the Hebrew University Business School, where he teaches Undergraduates, MBAs, and Exec-Ed Students, including at its prestigious directors’ course. He previously spent 17 years in US capital markets, working as a Portfolio Manager at a large hedge fund and as a CIO of $1B RIA, both in the US.
Outside of Academia, Yigal writes a weekly column on capital markets at TheMarker economic Daily; Writes legal opinions as an expert witness for litigation clients; Serves as a senior manager at NFV, which provides daily quotes services for all illiquid debt held in the Israeli Pension System; Consults to clients – including the Israeli Treasury and an EU Securities Authority - on capital markets, wealth management, and FinTech matters.
Dr. Newman also serves on the boards of Hebrew University Assets Ltd. and Karnit Compensation Fund Ltd.; and as a member of the investment committee at Israel’s Sovereign Wealth Fund.
- Current Research
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“Introducing Trade in Electricity Derivatives to the Israeli Market” (with Ran Shmueli; Financial Support by the Israeli Ministry of Energy)
“Liquidity management at Pension Plans” (with Zvi Wiener)
“Why did ESG Investment Fail in Israel?” (With Amit Lavie-Dinur and Yuval Karniel; financial support by the Arizona ESG Institute and ISA)
“SplitIt – A Case Study” (Financial Support by the Hurwitz Institute)
“Retail FinTech Offerings in Israel” (financial support by the Safra Institute)
- Publications
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• “Introducing Trade in Electricity Derivatives to the Israeli Market” (with Ran Shmueli; Financial Support by the Israeli Ministry of Energy)
• “Why did ESG Investment Fail in Israel?” (With Amit Lavie-Dinur and Yuval Karniel; financial support by the Arizona ESG Institute and ISA)
• “SplitIt – A Case Study” (Financial Support by the Hurwitz Institute)
• "GenAI and Human Capital: From Productivity Gains to Pipeline Risks" (with Michael Gofman) - Media Coverage
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"Israel’s economy is booming", The Economist, May 19, 2026
https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2026/05/21/israels-econ...