Royal Institute was named the winner in the Sri Lanka final of the “CFA Institute Research C
The regional winner will advance to the global championship to be held in New York in April 2012. CFA Institute Research Challenge is a prestigious international event aimed at promoting best practices in equity research among the next generation of analysts through hands-on mentoring and training in company analysis and presentation skills. Participants are introduced and “held” to the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.
In partnership with the global association of investment professionals of the CFA Institute, CFA Sri Lanka hosted the local final recently which attracted 30 students from six universities to participate this year. The team has to conduct research and analysis on the assigned listed company. An experienced investment professional was consigned to each team serving as a mentor and acting as a consultant to provide guidance on the skills needed for company visits, research writing, presentation and question handling.
The teams presented their analysis and recommendations to the panel of judges which was made up of experts and top management from the financial industry namely Jayantha Perera ((CFA) CEO/director), Aruna Perera ((CFA) Senior Vice President), Gayani Samarasekera ((CFA) Senior Associate Vice President) and Zaffar Jeevnunjee ((CFA) CEO).
“While congratulating Royal Institute on winning this year’s competition, Asia Pacific Operations CFA Institute Managing Director Dr. Ashvin Vibhakar (CFA) said, “We hope that the experience has helped to instil ethics within students and an appreciation of the best practices in this prospective generation of investment professionals.”
CFA Sri Lanka President Malinga Arsakularatne (CFA) commented, “We are grateful for the support received from Colombo Stock Exchange and Securities & Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka to the competition. This brings university students and investment professionals together in a unique setting, not only offering a platform for networking with people from different markets, but also promoting ethics and professional excellence and the value of a career in the finance industry.
All the teams have demonstrated critical thinking, analytical skill and confidence in handling tough questions from a panel of experienced industry professionals after months of preparation and hard work. I look forward to seeing a good performance from Royal Institute in the upcoming regional final.”
Travis Gomez, Udesh Rodrigo, Fazal Mushin, Deshani Seneviratne and Mengxi Yang from Royal Institute, completed a research analysis on Tokyo Cement and recommended a “buy” to the judges. The first runner-up team was from Sri Jayewardenepura University also recommended a “buy” on Tokyo Cement, while the members from the second runner-up team (Kelaniya University) recommended a “buy”/“hold”/ “Sell” on Tokyo Cement,
The CFA Institute Research Challenge was first launched in 2007 with fewer than 20 universities participating. In 2011 the competition attracted more than 2,500 students from 546 universities worldwide and featured Warren Buffett as a keynote speaker at the global final held in Omaha. This year CFA Institute expects participation of more than 3,000 students from 600 universities worldwide, including entries from Kenya, Vietnam, and Egypt for the first time.
http://www.thesundayleader.lk/2011/12/04/top-research-team/