New York-headquartered financial technology company Numerix has announced Jaya Gaur as the recipient of the 2024 Women in Finance Scholarship.
“This year, we had a very high calibre of applicants for the scholarship, with many very qualified candidates to choose from,” said Kelli Sayres from the scholarship’s corporate sponsor. “Gaur’s impressive resume and background blew me away. Seeing women excel in this industry so early in their careers makes me optimistic and excited about the future of women in finance.”
Gaur wins USD 20,000 to assist in pursuing her master’s degree in financial engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. Her resume includes stints at top-tier firms in roles like Synthetics Equity Swaps Trading and Delta One Trading. She also completed a research project focusing on debiasing AI, understanding the impact of behavioral finance on investing, and portfolio returns based on investor profiling, where she trained AI to predict relevant biases.
With the support of this scholarship, Gaur aims to advance her education and become a leading figure in the financial industry, which she is enthusiastic about seeing more women in, particularly in leadership roles.
“Each year, more women are breaking into traditionally male-dominated fields like finance, as employers increasingly recognise the value a diverse workforce brings to their organisations,” said Gaur. “This trend is incredibly encouraging. Women should seize every opportunity in finance, actively network, and, once they secure their dream jobs, never hesitate to voice their ideas and opinions.”
Gaur was born and raised in India, where the 2023 scholarship recipient, Jhanvi Shah, is also from. She eventually plans to return. “I’m excited to use my experience in order to help shape the financial landscape in India,” Gaur added. “I plan to establish my own portfolio management firm, leveraging the talented young population in India, giving them opportunities for career advancement in their own country.”
