Former Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences on Monday. Bernanke shared the prize with colleagues Douglas Diamond and Philip Dybvig for their work which “significantly improved our understanding of the role of banks in the economy, particularly during financial crises,” the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a news release announcing the award. “The laureates’ insights have improved our ability to avoid both serious crises and expensive bailouts,” says Tore Ellingsen, Chair of the Committee for the Prize in Economic Sciences. Bernanke served as the chairman of the Federal Reserve between 2006 and 2014, steering the institute through the disastrous economic crisis of 2008. He has since taken up a fellowship at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.