KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia Bhd anticipates more savvy investors coming into the stock market as it partners stockbroking companies to host programmes to raise financial literacy among the young.
At the Inter-Varsity Stock Challenge 2019 (IVSC) closing ceremony here today, Bursa Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift said, "We are encouraged by the positive response from students of the participating universities."
"This competition is creating the right type of conversation to generate interest among young people and build their confidence in becoming savvy, knowledgeable capital market investors," he said.
N2N Connect Bhd jointly organised the IVSC with Affin Hwang Capital, Macquarie Capital Securities, Public Investment Bank and AmInvestment Bank whom mentored the participating students throughout the 3-month competition.
Apart from Bursa Malaysia chief commercial officer Selvarany Rasiah, other members of the jury are Affin Hwang Capital group managing director Datuk Maimoonah Mohamed Hussain, Public Investment Bank chief executive officer Lee Yo-Hunn, AmInvestment Bank executive vice president and head of equity markets Gan Kim Khoon and N2N Connect managing director Andrew Tiang.
Bursa's Selvarany highlighted millennials are the fastest-growing account. "This year we’ve opened up more than 40 per cent of Central Depository System (CDS) accounts for millennials aged 25 years and below."
The IVSC, a 3-month virtual stock trading competition, had attracted 3,000 students from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Multimedia University (MMU) and Taylor’s University.
A total of RM81,000 worth of prizes were offered to participants of the IVSC and the grand prize winner walked away with a sum of RM30,000.
Two teams from Taylor's bagged the grand prize and second place, namely Team Goreng and Team Ikan Bakar, while third prize went to Team No Ideas from MMU.
"Throughout IVSC, the students from UTAR had the privilege to access first-hand our newly launched eInvest 2.0 stockbroking portal. This is part of Affin Hwang Capital's digital transformation roadmap which will improve our clients’ stockbroking experience," said Affin Hwang’s Maimoonah.
Macquarie head of listed product distribution Dean Herbert, in a statement, said the company introduce structured warrants as one of the investment and trading options available to participating students, which further raises awareness and educates the next generation of investors on warrants.
“We noticed participants appreciated the flexibility of warrants in their trading strategy, and are particularly interested in the index warrants, as they could take a bullish or bearish view on the markets in response to changing market conditions,” added Herbert.
“We, at AmInvestment Bank, are happy to partner N2N and Taylor’s University. This initiative exposes students to the world of stock investments. Winning is definitely rewarding but what is more important is the experience that is gained throughout this competition,” said Gan.
“We’re glad to partner Bursa Malaysia and N2N Connect in educating our younger generation on the merits of investment. Our heartfelt congratulations to MMU students for making it to the finals. We believe they have benefitted from this challenge and will use this experience in their future endeavors,” said Public Investment’s Lee.
Bursa's Umar welcomes more partnerships with stockbroking companies in raising financial literacy among investors, saying it is a critical enabler in developing a more vibrant capital market here.