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Staff Profile

Dr Shams Pathan

Senior Lecturer in Accounting & Finance

Background

Dr. Mohammad Shams Tabrize Pathan, known as Shams, is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Finance at Newcastle University Business School. Previously, he held academic positions at Curtin University, The University of Queensland, Bond University, and Asian University of Bangladesh. He was awarded the prestigious 2013 ARC Discovery Early Career Research Award in business, economics, and law. Shams was also a visiting research scholar at the University of Manchester in 2023.


Internationally recognized for his work, Shams has published 31+ academic papers in reputable journals, including the Journal of Corporate Finance (#2), Journal of Banking and Finance (#4), The British Accounting Review (#2) and Journal of Business Finance and Accounting (#2). His research has earned accolades like the 2016 CNMV Best Paper on Regulation. He has also been featured in The Economist, Financial Times Deutschland, and The Conversation. Shams has held significant academic leadership roles, including Chair of the Research Working Group and Director of the Master of Finance (Adv) course.


Collaboration and mentoring are integral to my academic approach. I am deeply committed to mentoring ECRs and students through peer-coaching and research training, guiding them to produce impactful work. My mentees have built successful careers at prestigious institutions like Goldman Sachs and ANZ, earned awards, and published in top-tier ABDC A*/A journals.


Shams earned his Ph.D. in Finance from Monash University and an M.Sc. in Finance from the University of Strathclyde. He also holds an M.Com and B.Com (Hons) in Finance and Banking from the University of Dhaka.


Beyond academia, Shams is a passionate traveller who enjoys exploring culture, history, and architecture, and building connections with people worldwide. His dedication to finance and education reflects his diverse interests and commitment to making a lasting impact in the world of finance and education.

Research

The purpose of my research is to foster a resilient financial system to benefit the organisations, economy, society, and environment. My research objective is compatible with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.[1] To achieve these goals, my research focuses on three specific theme of bank governance:


(1)   the optimal organization of bank board structures, [e.g., the bankrupt Long-term Capital Management in 1998 included two Nobel Laureates Myron Scholes and Robert Merton in their board]

(2)   the design of executive compensation packages within banks, [e.g., compensation encourages excessive risk-taking leading to financial crisis] and

(3)   the compatibility of institutional shareholder incentives with financial stability.


Through this research, I seek to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that contribute to a strong and stable financial system, and to identify actionable recommendations to address the pressing challenges such as-

•      transitioning to a net-zero emissions economy by promoting climate actions

•      leveraging disruptive technologies like digital coins, blockchain, tokenisation of assets

•      Combating the growing cybersecurity risk by being more cyber resilient


[1] Quality education (4), Gender equality (5), Affordable and clean energy (7), Decent work and economic development (8), Industry, innovation, and infrastructure (9), Reduced inequality (10), Sustainable cities and communities (11), Responsible consumption and production (12), Peace, Justice and strong institutions (16), and Partnership for the goals (17).

Teaching

My teaching philosophy is to create a student-centric learning environment where students’ mindset will be transformed into life-enriching GRIT (global, responsible, innovative, and technology) and infinite mindset essential to lead the future of works and to benefit the community and to increase social and environmental justice.


Four points to note from this teaching philosophy:

(1)   A student-centric learning environment enables students to drive their own learning process.

(2)   A GRIT mindset will enable students to

a.      Engage globally.

b.     Challenge critically.

c.      Innovate/create ethically.

d.     Use of technology decisively.

e.      Solve impactfully.

f.       Influence inclusively.

(3)   An infinite mindset will allow to focus on the long-term benefit in lieu of short-term profits/wins.

(4)   Our graduates should be valuable visible leaders to the organisations, societies, and environments.

 

Publications