FINANCE AND BUSINESS ECONOMICS  

Honouring the life of Clarence Kwan

January 28, 2026 ·

Contributed by: DeGroote School of Business

Clarence Chiu Yin Kwan, professor emeritus of Finance and Business Economics at DeGroote School of Business, passed away on Thursday, January 22, 2026, three weeks before his 83rd birthday. Kwan was a 47-year veteran of DeGroote and one of the longest-serving members of our faculty. He will be deeply missed by his colleagues and collaborators and by his many students.

Kwan joined McMaster University as an assistant professor of Engineering Physics in 1973 and transitioned to Finance and Business Economics in 1979. He served as area chair from 1994 to 1997 and as CIBC Chair in Financial Markets from 2003 to 2008. He also served on the Senate and Graduate Council and many faculty committees. During his long career, he made significant contributions to finance education and research, particularly in portfolio theory, investment analysis and financial education, and published almost 100 peer-reviewed articles in top journals.

Kwan was a beloved teacher and was committed to mentoring both graduate and undergraduate students. He received the S.J. Basu Teaching Award from DeGroote’s MBA Association in 1994.

“Clarence’s multifaceted contributions as an innovative teacher, accomplished researcher and visionary academic leader have shaped the lives and careers of countless students and faculty members, and his legacy will continue to influence our community for years to come,” said DeGroote School of Business Dean Khaled Hassanein.

“Clarence was the cleverest person I ever had the privilege to work with. He was able to do everything: not only did he have a considerable ability in mathematics (he had a PhD in physics as well as a PhD in finance), but also had very good economic intuition and the capacity for framing problems in highly imaginative ways,” said Trevor Chamberlain, professor of Finance and Business Economics at DeGroote.

“On a personal level, Clarence was what I would call a good person: uncompromising, honest and principled. He set high standards for students and colleagues alike but was also very fair. In my more than 40 years at McMaster, there is no one at the University (or elsewhere) that I have respected more,” added Chamberlain.

“Clarence was a generous mentor to me and an exceptional researcher,” said Sherman Cheung, professor of Finance and Business Economics at DeGroote. “His selfless dedication to the Finance Area and Business School was unparalleled. To many of us, he was not just a respected colleague, but a dear friend who will be deeply missed.”

“I met Clarence first during my job talk at McMaster in December 2019. His genuine cheerful, welcoming and caring attitude had a deep impact on me,” said Amir Akbari, associate professor and area chair of Finance and Business Economics at DeGroote. “He offered his valuable support to me in the following years, too. I feel lucky to have known him, have his support, learn from him, and enjoy his presence. He will be missed dearly.”

Kwan earned his first Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Ottawa in 1970, where he studied experimental semiconductor physics and graduated magna cum laude. He earned a P.Eng. designation in 1974, an MBA from McMaster in 1976 and a Ph.D. in Finance from the University of Toronto in 1979.

In an interview before his retirement, Kwan described his approach to teaching and research.

“As a researcher, I look for ways to make an idea, no matter how trivial it is, to appear sophisticated, so that I can convince the journal reviewers that the idea is worth pursuing and the corresponding results are worth publishing,” he said. “As a teacher, however, I do just the opposite. I look for ways to explain to students the course materials, no matter how sophisticated they are, in a manner that they do not find intimidating.”

During a retirement reception in November 2024, the DeGroote community celebrated Kwan’s remarkable career. The outpouring of appreciation from colleagues, students and friends reflected the mighty impact Kwan had on this community.

We are grateful for the legacy of Kwan’s leadership at DeGroote and McMaster. He will be deeply missed.

In keeping with Kwan’s wishes, there will be no funeral service. Instead, he suggested that those who wish to honour his memory listen to his favourite recording of Mozart’s Requiem: the Süssmayr completion on Philips, conducted by Peter Schreier.

 

It is devastating to lose a member of McMaster’s family. As a reminder, the University provides resources to staff, faculty and students to support them during this difficult time: