The American Finance Association (AFA) is an academic organization whose focus is the study and promotion of knowledge of financial economics. It was formed in 1939. Its main publication, the Journal of Finance, was first published in 1946. Mission The purpose of the association is to: Act as a mutual association of persons with an interest in finance Improve the public understanding of financial problems Provide for the exchange of financial ideas through the distribution of the Journal of Finance and other media Encourage the study of finance in colleges and universities Conduct other activities appropriate for a non-profit, professional society in the field of finance Membership As of 2022, the association has over 12,000 members. A variety of membership options exist and membership is open to anyone. A number of members are also distinguished in the Society of Fellows of the Association. These are members who have made significant contributions to the field of finance. Administration The administration of the association is overseen by both officers and a board of directors. All of these positions are held by faculty at various universities. The board of directors rotates over time and assists in key decisions and policies. Journal of Finance The Journal of Finance is an academic journal that covers the whole field of finance. It began publication in 1946. According to Journal Citation Reports, it has a 2015 impact factor of 5.290. The current editorial team is Stefan Nagel (editor), Philip Bond, Amit Seru, and Wei Xiong. The Journal of Finance, The Review of Financial Studies, and the Journal of Financial Economics are considered to be the top-three finance journals. Annual meeting An annual meeting of the association is held every year in January, in conjunction with the American Economic Association and the North American Winter Meetings of the Econometric Society as a part of the Allied Social Science Associations. The president speaks on a selected topic and there are presentations of various financial papers. The AFA, Western Finance Association Meetings, and Society for Financial Studies Cavalcade are considered to be the three top general finance conferences in the world. Recent Annual Meeting AFA sites: 2015 Boston, Massachusetts 2016 San Francisco, California 2017 Chicago, Illinois 2018 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2019 Atlanta, Georgia 2020 San Diego, California 2021 Virtual Annual Meeting 2022 Virtual Annual Meeting Past and current presidents of the AFA 1940 Kenneth Field 1941 Chelcie C. Bosland 1942 Charles