The competition took place at the Filoxenia Conference Centre on 21 February 2020 and attracted student teams from Cyprus International Institute of Management (CIIM), European University Cyprus, UCLan Cyprus, University of Cyprus and University of Nicosia. This year, the participating teams were required to analyse the share of CSE-listed Cypriot company Vassiliko Cement Works Public Ltd. and present their investment evaluation and proposal to CFA charterholders and other professionals of the financial sector.

More specifically, each team consisting of three to five students had to present its analysis in front of a group of panel judges, within a specific timeframe and respond to questions in real time, replicating a typical investment committee meeting. The presentation accounted for 50 per cent of the final score, while the other 50 per cent came from the 10-page financial report containing an assessment of the company’s value, submitted by each team earlier. It is worth noting that throughout the year, the teams were offered training by members of CFA Society Cyprus through targeted workshops, on company analysis and equity valuation techniques, as well as on how to present an investment proposal.

CFA Society Cyprus head Panayiotis Mavromichalis emphasised in his statement the remarkable experience the competition offers to Finance students, as it provides them with the opportunity to experience as real financial analysts, the world of business, through a comprehensive study of a company’s business model and share price. The award was presented by the general manager of Vassiliko Cement Works George Savva. The winning team will travel to Jordan on April 1-2, where it will represent Cyprus in the regional competition for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). The finalist of the EMEA competition will then participate in the CFA Research Challenge Global Final, which will take place in New York on April 20 to 22.

More than 6,100 students from over 1,000 Universities in 95 countries worldwide participate in the CFA Research Challenge. The sponsor of the Cypriot competition was XM Group.

Source: Cyprus Mail