CFA Society opens 5th local level research challenge for university students
With more than 6,000 participants from 1,150 universities and 95 countries, this research challenge is truly global
CFA Society Bangladesh has inaugurated the 2020-21 Local CFA Institute Research Challenge.
The fifth arrangement in Bangladesh has picked Brac Bank – a leading private commercial lender – as the "Subject Company" for the Bangladesh-based participating teams, according to a press statement issued by the society.
Selim RF Hussain, managing director and chief executive officer of Brac Bank, made a presentation, before the participating students, about the bank's: development history, vision, purpose, and strategy going forward.
Later, Hussain and his team also responded to different questions from the students.
The SME-focused bank started its operations in 2001 and has an asset size of Tk44,776 crore as of 30 September, 2020.
Each year, the CFA Institute Research Challenge rewards global participants, emerging from local champions, who demonstrate supreme: analytical, valuation, report writing, and presentation skills.
During this global competition, participants go through intensive training in financial analysis and professional ethics. Leading industry professionals mentor them so that they can gain real-world experience.
With more than 6,000 participants from 1,150 universities and 95 countries, this research challenge is truly global.
CFA Society Bangladesh has been arranging this local competition for the last four years and it received an extensive response from university students in earlier seasons.
In the local part of the competition, CFA Society Bangladesh conducts an initial screening round where participants from different universities of Bangladesh take part and compete to become the top 10 to 12 teams in the competition.
At the local final level, 12 teams, participating from the selected universities, will present in-depth analysis on Brac Bank Limited before the panel consisting of top industry practitioners.
There are four stages that the teams must successfully navigate through to be crowned winners of the CFA Institute Research Challenge.
They are the: local, sub-regional, regional, and global levels. At each stage, the teams must present and defend their analysis to a panel of industry professionals.
Due to the pandemic, all levels of this year's competitions will be hosted exclusively online.
"The CFA Institute Research Challenge is a wonderful way of preparing students to understand real-world business and gather in-depth knowledge about financial analysis," said Md Shaheen Iqbal, president of CFA Society Bangladesh.
"We are happy to contribute towards the development of professionals in the area of investment analysis," he added.
The first prize of the Local CFA Institute Research Challenge is Tk350,000 and winners will receive a special discount of $200 for the Level 1 CFA Exam at the time of registration to be held in August 2021.
CFA Institute is a global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for professional excellence and credentials. The organisation is a champion of ethical behaviour in investment markets and a respected source of knowledge in the global financial community.
There are more than 162,000 CFA charterholders worldwide in 163 countries and regions. CFA Institute has nine offices worldwide and 154 local member societies.
CFA Society Bangladesh, a member society of CFA Institute, plays an important role in providing continuing education and networking opportunities to its members and contributing to the development of the financial service industry and the investment management profession in the country.
The society aims to achieve, foster and maintain high standards of ethics and professionalism for its members and stakeholders in the areas of investment analysis, portfolio management and related disciplines in Bangladesh.