In Memory of Christopher L. Culp

April 7, 1969 - June 30, 2020

It is with great sadness that we share that our dear colleague and friend, Christopher Culp, has passed away.

Christopher Culp was a highly respected financial economist, academic, and expert witness.  More importantly, Chris was an extraordinarily warm and generous person that leaves behind countless friends and colleagues around the world.  He was a passionate teacher and mentor, never tiring of creating opportunities for both his Compass Lexecon colleagues and many graduate students.  He was fiercely loyal to his clients and those closest to him, always making time to share his breadth of knowledge and experience in his unique, charismatic way.  

In addition to Chris’ close and long-standing affiliation with Compass Lexecon, he was steadfast in his dedication to other ventures as well.  He was the founder and Managing Director of Financial Economics Consulting, Inc. Chris was a Research Fellow of The Johns Hopkins University’s Institute for Applied Economics, Global Health and Study of Business Enterprise, and Co-Director of its Studies in Applied Finance working paper series in that program.  He was also Adjunct Professor at the Swiss Finance Institute, and Honorarprofessor at Universität Bern in the Institut für Finanzmanagement.  Chris received his Ph.D. in financial economics from The University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and was an adjunct faculty member there from 1998-2013.

Chris brought deep analytical expertise and encyclopedic institutional knowledge to studies of financial markets and products that are unmatched in the industry.  Chris was an incredible writer - the author of five books, co-editor of two others, and published dozens of articles in academic and industry publications.  He graciously served on the editorial board of several of these journals.

Chris had wide ranging interests and a vast knowledge of subjects ranging from Broadway shows, to Alexander Hamilton’s papers to the latest developments in asset pricing and risk management.  He was an avid supporter of the arts, most recently as a Trustee of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra where, in his early days before he could afford a ticket, he would sit on the steps of the lobby to hear the orchestra perform and fulfill his love for classical music. Chris was an engaging storyteller, always met with a captive audience, and was legendary for his travel anecdotes and sense of humor.

Herr Dr. Professor Culp (as he was known in Switzerland) was one of a kind, can never be replaced, and will be greatly missed.