Wroclaw University of Economics Crowned Winner of Seventh Annual CFA Institute Research Challenge
A team of future investment professionals from Wroclaw University of Economics (Poland) has been named the winner of the seventh annual CFA Institute Research Challenge Global Final, an annual competition of more 3,500 students from 775 universities worldwide. Hosted by CFA Institute, the global association of investment professionals, the competition is designed to promote ethics and best practices in equity research among the next generation of analysts, through hands-on mentoring and intensive training in company analysis and presentation skills.
Regional competitions were held in the Americas, New York City, Asia Pacific, and EMEA over the past 10 months to determine the four teams that competed in the Global Final, which was held in London today. The winning team overcame competition from:
- The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (United States) from the Americas region
- Fordham University, New York (United States) from the New York City area
- Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (India) from the Asia Pacific region
“I congratulate Wroclaw University for capturing the CFA Institute Research Challenge Global Final title,” said John Rogers, CFA, President and CEO of CFA Institute. “This year, 3,500 students from 54 countries took part and they have worked long and hard to be part of this contest, which is testament to the very high calibre of investment professionals entering the industry in the coming years. These students hold such promise for restoring trust in the markets, and helping to reshape the future of the financial industry.”
The CFA Institute Research Challenge offers students the unique opportunity to learn from leading industry experts and their peers from the world’s top business schools. The competition spans one academic year, and consists of analysing a public company, mentoring by a professional research analyst, writing a research report, and presenting research results and recommendations to a high-profile panel of experts. Marks are awarded to teams on the basis of their investment case, their poise, and their ability to answer the judges’ questions. The teams are sponsored by local CFA Institute member societies or groups of volunteers, each of which previously hosted country heats of the Challenge.
The winning Wroclaw University team presented and defended a report on KGHM Polska Miedz SA to a panel of investment industry experts that comprised:
- Anne R. Marden, CFA, JPMorgan Asset Management
- Qutaiba Hawamdeh, CFA, AB Invest - Arab Bank Group
- Don Fitzgerald, CFA, Tocqueville Finance S.A.
- David Zahn, CFA, Franklin Templeton Investments
The global winners from the past three years came from Thammasat University (Bangkok, Thailand) who won in 2012, Politecnico di Milano (Milan, Italy) who won in 2011; and the University of the Philippines Diliman who won in 2010.
An archived recording of the global final will be posted to the Research Challenge Facebook page.