University of Colombo triumphs at CFA Sri Lanka Research Challenge Finals

CFA Sri Lanka has announced that the University of Colombo has won the CFA Sri Lanka Research Challenge Finals for the third successive year and will now advance to the Asia Pacific Regional round where it will compete against leading universities from the region. 

The University of Colombo team consisting of Rukshani Adhihetty, Praveen Fernando, Nilukshi Jayawardena, Supun Walpola, Mohammed Faik Mohammed Ruzni (Lecturer in Charge – Ganga Fernando) and mentored by Rashmin Lokubandara, CFA beat five other teams from the University of Sri Jayewardenapura, the Royal Institute of Colombo, the University of Moratuwa, the University of Kelaniya and the Business Management School (BMS) at the CFA Sri Lanka Research Challenge Finals held at the Ramada Hotel on 6 November. 

Each university sent in a team of three-to-five students to participate in the local challenge. The students presented their analysis and buy/sell/hold recommendations on Textured Jersey Lanka Ltd. Their presentation at the CFA Sri Lanka Research Challenge Final was the culmination of months of research, interviews with company management and presentation training. 

The CFA Sri Lanka Research Challenge Finals was the first step of two for a local team to advance towards the global final in Chicago. All three regional competitions and the Global Final will take place the week of 11 April 2016 in Chicago, Illinois.

For the first time in Sri Lanka, the presentations were delivered in front of a live audience, which included deans of faculties, department heads and lecturers from the respective universities, senior officials from the Colombo Stock Exchange and the Securities and Exchange Commission, senior company representatives from Textured Jersey, CFA Charterholders, the broker community and members from the capital markets. 

Speaking to the Daily FT, CFA Sri Lanka Director and Research Challenge Chairperson Zaffar Jeevunjee said, “We would like to congratulate all the teams that took part in this year’s local challenge and we wish the University of Colombo the very best as it goes on to compete at the Regional Final in Chicago. The CFA Institute Research Challenge enables Sri Lankan university students to learn and develop best practices in equity research. The training and mentoring they receive during this competition, from CFA Charterholders, industry experts, as well as the senior management of the target company is an invaluable complement to their regular course work.” This year’s CFA Sri Lanka Research Challenge was sponsored by the Colombo Stock Exchange as the Platinum sponsor and the Securities and Exchange Commission as the Gold sponsor. The CFA Institute Research Challenge gathers students, investment industry professionals, publicly traded companies and corporate sponsors together locally, regionally, and globally for an annual competition. In order to promote best practices in equity research and company analysis, students research, analyse, and report on a company as if they are practicing analysts. Local CFA member societies and other affiliated groups host local level competitions of the Research Challenge in conjunction with the participating universities. The universities assemble teams of three to five business and finance students who work directly with a company in researching and preparing a company analysis. The team’s final presentations are locally evaluated by high-profile panels of heads of research, portfolio managers, and chief investment officers from the world’s top firms. The local champions advance to regional competitions for the Americas, Asia Pacific, and Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) and then to the Global Final, which will all be held in the same location this year. 

CFA Institute is the global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for professional excellence and credentials. The organisation is a champion for ethical behaviour in investment markets and a respected source of knowledge in the global financial community. The end goal: to create an environment where investors’ interests come first, markets function at their best, and economies grow. CFA Institute has more than 113,000 members in 140 countries and territories, including more than 100,000 CFA charterholders, and 144 member societies.