Sid Mittra, a prominent Michigan-based financial planner and one of the early academic pioneers of the profession, died in Minnesota two days before his 92nd birthday, according to miindia.com.
An accomplished teacher and author, Mittra built a successful financial planning business at the same time as he worked to advance the professionalization of the discipline in academia.
Mittra was born the eighth of 10 children on May 13, 1930, in India, according to miindia.com. He came to the U.S. in his 20s and obtained a doctorate in economics at the University of Florida while winning tenure soon thereafter.
Mittra would then go on to teach at the University of Detroit before moving to Oakland University in Rochester, Mich. During these years, Mittra’s research interests migrated from economics to finance.
At age 50, Mittra embarked on a second career as a financial planner, quickly applying his intelligence and academic training to what was then a cottage industry. He continued to practice and write well into his 70s.
When the financial planning profession was in its embryonic phases, Mittra joined the Board of Certified Financial Planners and authored Practicing Financial Planning: A Complete Guide for Professionals. According to Wikipedia, he wrote four other books on finance and investing as well.
Leading advisors paid tribute to Mittra. “He was not only passionate about financial planning but also an incredible human being with a fascinating personal history,” said Evensky & Katz co-founder Harold Evensky. “Sid’s book ... is by far the most comprehensive one on the market and has been through innumerable editions.”
According to the obituary in miindia.com, Mittra was also a skilled vocalist and musician. Together with his wife, Bani, a skilled vocalist, the couple were dedicated proponents of Bengali music and culture.