Laura Veldkamp, Cooperman Professor of Finance and Economics at Columbia Business School, visited the UPF Department of Economics and Business on March 11 to give a departmental seminar titled "The Data Economy: Measurement, Markets and Policy."

The seminar examined the economic role of data as a valuable but difficult-to-measure asset. Prof. Veldkamp discussed how data improves prediction, supports better decision-making, and can generate new sources of market power. She also addressed the challenges that arise when data is exchanged indirectly, embedded in "free" digital services, or used in ways that are not fully captured by traditional measures of economic activity. The discussion connected measurement questions with broader issues in competition, regulation, and policy.

Prof. Veldkamp is a leading scholar in macroeconomics, finance, the data economy and information choice. Her research has explored how information and data shape financial markets, firm dynamics, aggregate economic outcomes and policy design. She is a Fellow of the Econometric Society, a CEPR Research Fellow and an NBER Faculty Research Fellow, and has published widely in leading journals including the American Economic Review, Econometrica, the Journal of Political Economy, the Review of Economic Studies, the Review of Financial Studies, and the Journal of Economic Literature.

Prof. Veldkamp's visit also highlights her ongoing collaboration with Isaac Baley, professor of economics at UPF and researcher at CREI and the Barcelona School of Economics. In 2025 they co-authored a new book titled "The Data Economy: Tools and Applications" through Princeton University Press. In summer 2026, Prof. Veldkamp and Prof. Baley will also teach a five-day online Data Economy course, which will cover approaches to measuring and valuing data as an intangible asset.