Former Reagan Advisor Joins Portfolio Optimization Software Board

Alpha Theory, the market leading Portfolio Management Platform, announces today that Dr. Arthur Laffer, President Reagan’s former Economic Advisor and the namesake of the Laffer Curve, joins the company’s board of directors. Dr. Laffer joins existing board members Charlie Anderson, founder of Fox Point Capital, a long-short equity hedge fund based in New York City and Harry Blount, former Institutional Investor ranked analyst with Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette and Lehman Brothers and board member of numerous technology councils and companies.

“We are thrilled to have Dr. Laffer join our board for his tremendous experience and influence in the financial community,” said Cameron Hight, President of Alpha Theory. “He is renowned for his impact on global economic policy and has influenced United States financial decision making for almost 40 years. Dr. Laffer’s work with our company is a testament to the importance of the Alpha Theory platform in the decision-making process of hedge and mutual fund managers. His experience in critical decision-making will provide invaluable insight into how Alpha Theory advances its platform.”

“Just like quote machines displaced ticker tapes, spreadsheets replaced ledger sheets and Bloomberg supplanted Value Line, the investment industry has consistently found ways to leverage technology for financial gain,” said Dr. Arthur Laffer. “I believe that Alpha Theory represents a logical next step in the evolution of money management. Firms will advance to a disciplined system of portfolio construction based on consolidated research and a repeatable method of determining position size. I am excited about the opportunity to advise and influence Alpha Theory as their vision of Fundamental Portfolio Optimization becomes common practice.”

Dr. Arthur Laffer is the Founder of Laffer Associates, an economic research and consulting firm. Dr. Laffer is best known for the Laffer Curve which was made famous while he was a member of President Reagan's Economic Policy Advisory Board for both of his terms (1981-1989). He also advised Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher on fiscal policy in the United Kingdom during the 1980s. His economic acumen and influence triggered a world-wide tax-cutting movement in the 1980s. One of his earliest successes in shaping public policy was his involvement in Proposition 13, the groundbreaking California initiative that drastically cut property taxes in the state in 1978. During the years 1972 to 1977, Dr. Laffer was a consultant to Secretary of the Treasury William Simon, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of the Treasury George Shultz. Dr. Laffer was a professor of economics at Pepperdine, University of Southern California and University of Chicago. During his tenure at Chicago (1967-1976), fellow economics professors included Nobel Laureates Milton Friedman, Ronald Coase, George Stigler, Gary Becker, James Heckman, Robert Fogel and Robert Mundell. Dr. Laffer received a B.A. in Economics from Yale University and an MBA and a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University