Chhavi Rastogi
Economist at International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group
Email: chhavir@gmail.com
Research interests:
Corporate finance and development
Entrepreneurship and innovation
Private equity and venture capital
ESG and sustainability
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About me
I am an Economist at the Research department of IFC, World Bank Group. Before this, I was a post-doctoral researcher at University of Bonn and completed my PhD in finance from HEC Paris in 2022. My research focuses on corporate finance and its intersection with development, entrepreneurship and innovation. Before starting my doctoral studies, I worked in corporate and investment banking.
Working papers
Presentations: Econometric Society World Congress (Aug 2025), IFC-PEDL-STEG Workshop on Targeting Development Finance (June 2025), WEFIDEV-RFS-CEPR conference 2025, European Finance Association (EFA Poster) 2023, Private Sector Finance and Development (STEG) workshop 2023, American Finance Association (AFA) 2023, The North East Universities Development Consortium (NEUDC) 2022, Financial Management Association (FMA) 2022, Entrepreneurial Finance (ENTFIN) Association 2022, CEPR WEFIDEV Workshop in Finance and Development 2022, Transatlantic Doctoral Conference 2021
This paper studies the importance of high-quality domestic intermediate inputs as a barrier to investment for downstream firms. I show that the staggered repeal of size-based restrictions in product markets in India increases production of high-quality domestic intermediate inputs, stimulating investment among downstream firms. The investment response is explained by easing of financial constraints and lack of close substitutes in import markets. Downstream incumbents upgrade, shift their product mix toward higher-quality ladder products and reduce reliance on imported inputs. In addition, entry into downstream markets increases. Policies to protect small firms may unintentionally constrain firms along the supply chain.
ESG incidents and fundraising in private equity (with Teodor Duevski and Tianhao Yao)
Presentations: Financial Intermediation Research Society - FIRS 2025, Midwest Finance Association - MFA 2025, Australasian Finance and Banking conference 2024, HEC-HKUST Sustainable Finance Webinar, FMA 2024, Oxford Sustainable Private Market Conference 2024, GRASFI 2024, Private Market Research conference in Lausanne 2024, Inquire Europe “Investing in Private assets” 2024, Risk forum by Institut Louis Bachelier, HEC Paris S&O day
Media Coverage: Institutional Investor
We present novel evidence on how environmental and social (E&S) incidents affect the capital-raising ability of Private Equity (PE) firms. PE firms with E&S incidents in portfolio companies are less likely to fundraise and raise smaller subsequent funds. The decrease in capital commitment does not seem related to fund performance; instead, it is driven by E&S concerns of limited partners (LPs). LPs trade off E&S concerns with divestment costs, implying a weaker impact on large, top-performing PE firms. The threat of ``exit'' by E&S-concerned investors incentivizes PE firms to exert ``voice'' and mitigate negative externalities associated with PE ownership.
Creative destruction: Do incumbents continue to innovative?
Presentations: FMA New Ideas session 2022, AFFECT New Ideas session 2022
I study the process of creative destruction to understand how firms respond to being potentially displaced by new technologies. Specifically, I ask whether these firms continue to innovate. Theory predicts that more intense competition induces firms closer to the frontier to catch up but may discourage innovation in firms further away from the frontier. I employ measures of patent text similarity to construct a measure of creative destruction to study this question. The project further aims to understand how firms regain their innovation edge and the stock market implications of displacement risk.
Policy work-in-progress
Report on Green opportunities: Innovation and Entrepreneurship for the Net Zero Transition in Emerging Markets, led by Ralf Martin
Report on The Cost of Capital: Scaling up Private Finance in EMDEs, led by Cesaire Meh
Education (CV)
PhD in Finance, HEC Paris, Supervisor: Johan Hombert (2016-2022)
Masters in Economics, University Paris Saclay (ENSAE-HEC Paris) (2015-16)
Masters in European Business, ESCP Europe (2008-10)
MBA, MDI Gurgaon (dual degree) (2008-10)
B.A. Hons. Economics, Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University (2004-07)
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