Carol Alexander is Professor of Finance at the University of Sussex Business School and a Research Council Member at the Exponential Science Foundation. Her work covers cryptocurrency markets, derivatives, financial risk management and decentralized finance, combining academic research with experience in financial services.
Research and market structure
Alexander studies market microstructure, volatility modelling, investment strategies and portfolio risk. Her cryptocurrency research includes price discovery, the use of leverage and the regulatory questions raised by trading practices. These subjects concern how prices form across markets and how the structure of a trading venue can affect the risks faced by its users.
Her research and consulting work has also covered benchmarking, trading models, hedging and the measurement of market risk. She has worked with banks, asset managers and exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange and Intercontinental Exchange. She has served as an expert witness in cases involving market manipulation and financial misconduct.
Career and publications
Before and alongside her academic work, Alexander held industry positions as Director and Head of Market Risk Modelling at Nikko Securities, Director at Algorithmics Inc., and Bond Analyst at Phillips & Drew in London. These appointments span securities analysis, risk modelling and financial software.
Alexander wrote the four-volume Market Risk Analysis, published by Wiley in 2008. She also served as Editor of the Journal of Banking and Finance for a decade until 2023. Her professional activities have included the Bachelier Prize Committee and the Steering Committee for the Centre for Financial Industries at the Fields Institute.
Education and teaching
Alexander holds a BSc in Mathematics with Experimental Psychology and a PhD in Algebraic Number Theory from the University of Sussex. She also holds an MSc in Mathematical Economics and Econometrics from the London School of Economics.
Alongside university teaching and research, she publishes educational material through the Professor Carol Alexander YouTube channel. Her recent lectures have addressed generative artificial intelligence, its use in education and its wider social implications.
Bitcoin commentary
CryptoSlate included Alexander in its 2026 Bitcoin market outlook, reporting her expectation of a volatile trading range between $75,000 and $150,000, with a center around $110,000. The range described her outlook for that year, rather than a single price target.
Her public commentary also addresses crypto regulation, systemic risk and the effects of trading practices on financial markets.
