Congratulations to our undergraduates who won the CFA Institute Research Challenge Singapore Round 2016. They defeated teams from SMU, NTU, SIM University, SIM Global, SIT and Yale-NUS.
More than up to the Challenge
The team comprising, (from left to right) Toh Zhen Zhou, Yeo Sui Chuan, Sarah Long, Lim Wei Quan Jenson and Wang Wei Long Bryan, also clinched the Best Research Report Award.
Held annually since 2007, the competition is organised by CFA Institute, a global association of finance professionals. Our school has been dominating the Research Challenge Singapore Round. With this year’s title, we have won a record five times, two more than our nearest challenger, SMU.
With the win, our team has earned the right to represent Singapore in the Asia Pacific round in Chicago this April. If they win, they will represent the region in the final global round.
We asked the students to tell us about their journey so far:
Toh Zhen Zhou (Faculty of Science – Statistics, Year 3):
The competition was an eye opener for me, given my Science background. Although writing reports and doing financial analysis is not new to me, the case study pushed me to find interesting and sound investment angles. It was also great to work with such dedicated and talented teammates who were willing to sacrifice countless nights on the report and presentation.
Yeo Sui Chuan (BBA (Hons) – Finance, Year 4):
Many sacrifices were made in preparing for this prestigious and highly challenging competition – working over the school holidays, sleepless nights and falling behind on our academic work. But the opportunity to pit ourselves against the best teams and to present in front of industry experts made it worth the effort.
Sarah Long (BBA (Hons) – Finance, Year 4):
We gave our best effort to ensure that we covered all angles for the report. This whole process has been very enlightening as I gained useful insight into industry dynamics and expectations. For this and more, I would like to thank our industry mentor, Mr Kevin Gin, Director of Alpha Capital Pte Ltd, as well as our faculty advisor, Dr Lee Hon Sing, for their invaluable advice and guidance.
Lim Wei Quan Jenson (BBA (Hons) – Finance, Year 4):
We had been drilled into that a well-written report is not an encyclopedia on the industry, nor one that delivers the most sensational story. Instead it delivers the information in a manner that even an amateur can understand, otherwise he will not proceed beyond page one. We are very thankful to our mentors who helped us to “level up” our writing and to work around imperfect disclosures, vague management guidance and industry jargon.
Wang Wei Long Bryan (BBA(Hons) – Finance Year 4):
I learned that understanding the dynamics of the industry is a critical part of background research, and we will be doing more of this research to prepare for the Regional Round.
Well done, team, and all the best in Chicago!