April 2, 2018

Now in it’s 15^th year, the Rotman International Trading Competition (RITC) provides a three-day simulated market challenge. Taking business case competitions to the next level, this year’s prestigious RITC attracted more than 420 students representing 51 universities from across Canada, the United States, Europe, Africa and Asia. This was the seventh time a team represented the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics at RITC and the first time our students took home silver.

Over the course of the competition, the student teams participate in various trading and finance case scenarios, relying on simulation software to execute their trades.

“We opened our CI Financial Finance Lab in the fall of 2017, which provides students with the software that’s used in this competition,” says Dr. Andriy Shkilko, associate professor of finance and Canada Research Chair in Financial Markets. “This, coupled with the new Financial Markets and Securities Trading class, has enabled like-minded students to not only find one another, but to also create a team and practice for this type of competition.”

The RITC attracts many leading business schools, including Princeton, Duke and Cornell. The success of this year’s team underscores the strength of the Lazaridis School’s immersive education.

This year’s Lazaridis School team was comprised of six students: Raman Arora (Double Degree BBA/UW Computer Science), Charles Zhao (Double Degree BBA/UW BMath), Jesse Liu (Double Degree BBA/Financial Math), Wayne Wong (Double Degree BBA/UW Computer Science), Tim Yang (Double Degree BBA/UW BMath) and Randy Zhu (Double Degree BBA/UW BMath). The team met in Dr. Shiklko’s class, and with the help of last year’s Lazaridis School participants, they set their sights on making an impact at the RITC. Alumnus Wills Iyer, (Double Degree BBA/UW Math ’17) was instrumental in the team’s second-place finish.

“We want our team’s finish to inspire many students to go above and beyond in their academics,” says Liu. “Our team of undergrads was at a disadvantage compared to teams from global top tier quantitative master’s programs. Our experience taught us that succeeding in a trading competition such as RITC requires more than just book smarts. Our winning strategies and execution were the result of dedication, practice, creativity and, most of all, teamwork.”

Shkilko says, “Their silver standing is an amazing accomplishment. It illustrates both the calibre of our students, and highlights the tremendous recent growth the Lazaridis School has seen in the area of Finance.”