Team

Michiel Bijlsma

Michiel Bijlsma is head of the Finance, Regulation and Governance cluster at SEO Economic Research. Michiel has over 20 years of experience in applied economic research in the fields of market regulation, the housing market, financing, fiscal and macro-economic policy, regulation of financial markets, consumer behaviour, digitisation and innovation. He has extensive project management experience and combines a scientific view with a focus on practical relevance for his clients.

Before joining SEO, Michiel was Head of Payments Policy at De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) from 2019-2020. He was secretary of the Dutch Payments (MOB) . His work focused on consumer preferences around privacy, the rise of fintech and bigtech in payment markets, the implementation of PSD2 and open banking, and Central Bank Digital Currency, among other things. From 2006-2018 he worked at the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB), as head of the Market Regulation sector (2013-2018), programme leader Financial Markets (2008-2013) and senior researcher (2006-2008). He was responsible for the Financial Risk Report issued annually by CPB and the policy evaluations on innovation policy and healthcare. He also worked on the housing market, regulation of financial markets, governance of public and semi-public institutions, efficiency in healthcare, data science, and privacy and innovation policy. From 2003 to 2006, he worked at the Netherlands Authority for Consumers & Markets (ACM) as senior staff member and interim head of the Financial Sector Monitor. From 2000 to 2002, he worked as a consultant at Ernst and Young Treasury and Financial Risk Management, where he was mainly involved in risk models and the valuation of complex derivatives.

Michiel studied theoretical physics at Utrecht University from 1991 to 1996. He then obtained a PhD in theoretical physics.

Michiel publishes regularly in professional journals on the subjects of financial markets, competition and innovation. He has published in leading scientific economic journals such as the Rand journal of economics and the Journal of Public Economics.

In addition to his work at SEO, Michiel is an extramural fellow at the Tilburg Law and Economic Center (Tilec), which is part of Tilburg University. Michiel is also chairman of the microdata users’ council of Statistics Netherlands (CBS).

Contact:

m.bijlsma@seo.nl

+31 (0)6 1859 0728