Jonathan Fortun

Senior Economist · Institute of International Finance

Jonathan Fortun is a Senior Economist at the Institute of International Finance. His work connects international capital flows and global macroeconomics with the monetary and financial systems through which money moves. He studies how these movements affect exchange rates, external balances and the real economy, with particular depth in emerging markets, Japan and Bolivia.

Capital flows provide the empirical starting point: where investment originates, how it is allocated across countries and what makes financing resilient or vulnerable. His research follows those questions into monetary policy, foreign exchange and the institutions that shape financial decisions. Work on payments and digital finance extends the same inquiry to the mechanisms through which money is transferred and economic activity is financed.

Japan and Bolivia offer distinct perspectives on these global questions. Japan brings the origins and international allocation of capital into focus. Bolivia offers a close view of monetary constraints, exchange rate pressures and development. Across institutional analysis, academic research, public commentary, data and software, the connecting question is how financial arrangements translate into outcomes for economies and people.

Before joining the IIF, he worked at the World Bank and the Inter American Development Bank, following earlier experience as a financial adviser in Bolivia. He has also consulted on trade, finance and economic issues in Japan and Latin America. This combination of multilateral experience and country focused work informs his approach to the links between international markets, domestic institutions and economic development.

He holds master’s degrees in International Economics and Finance from Johns Hopkins University and in Economics and International Relations from Kobe University in Japan, as well as a degree in Financial Engineering awarded magna cum laude. He is fluent in English, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese.