Dr. Kenneth N. Daniels, associate professor of finance, has been presented the Sydney Futures Exchange prize for the best paper on derivatives. Dr. Daniels' article entitled “The Effects of Credit Ratings on Credit Default Swaps and Credit Spreads” investigates the development of the credit default swap market and the impact of credit ratings and macroeconomic variables on corporate bonds and credit default swaps of corporate entities. Dr. Daniels will present the award-winning paper in Sydney, Australia in December 2004 at the 17th Annual Australasian Finance and Banking Conference. The Sydney Futures Exchange prize is annually awarded to encourage leading-edge research in the area of derivatives and also distributes a cash award.