The National Research University Higher School of Economics won the Russian stage of the international student competition in financial analysis. The victory was announced by CFA Association Russia in the Moscow Exchange, where the competition took place.

For the fourth year in a row, the Moscow State University team won the live presentation segment of the competition, which took place at the Moscow Exchange. However, the overall score, which was based on a combination of the written report and the live presentation, defined the HSE team as the ultimate winner, and the long-time champion proudly passed the baton to another leading Russian university.

In April, the HSE team will represent Russia among EMEA countries at the regional stage of the competition held in Amsterdam. Our talented students will meet colleagues from the most prestigious business schools, receiving a unique opportunity to learn from leading industry experts. CFA Institute Research Challenge is a truly global event, traditionally attended by more than 3,500 young financial specialists from 55 countries and 800 universities.

The annual main event was attended by representatives of the evaluated subject company (which was “Tinkoff Credit Systems”) as well as members of the CFA community and students from top Russian universities.

After months of hard work on competitive tasks (including a written evaluation of “Tinkoff Credit Systems” and a video presentation), the four best teams met face-to-face in the decisive live battle for the title of Russian finalist in the CFA Institute Research Challenge. 

The final exam took the form of a real-time presentation of investment projects, followed by questions of the jury, which included:

• Neil Withers, CFA, President, CFA Association Russia
• Andrey Tretelnikov, CFA, Rye, Man&Gor Securities
• Anush Hakobyan, Senior Lecturer at The Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and  Public Administration
• Denis Sitnikov, CFA, Board Member, CFA Association Russia
• Maxim Russkikh, Head of Investor Relations, Bistrodengi
• Pavel Tokarev, Vice-President, Tinkoff Credit Systems
• Vladislav Smirnov, CFA, Financial Analyst, Tinkoff Credit Systems

The 5th local finals in Russia of the CFA Institute Research Challenge was organized by the CFA Association Russia. The overall goal was to allow local universities to expand their exposure to international financial markets, and improve students' skills in investment analysis and evaluation.

The first Chartered Financial Analyst designation, or CFA charter, was introduced and awarded to students–participants of the CFA program in 1963 in the USA.

Today, more than 120,000 CFA charter-holders work in 139 countries across the globe. In total, during 1997 through 2012, over 7,000 Russian candidates applied for CFA exams. There are now over 600 CFA charter-holders in Russia.

Since 2004, their interests are represented by CFA Association Russia, a non-profit organization and member society of the global CFA institute. The mission of CFA Association Russia is to expand relations within the investment and financial industry and the professional community, and to assist CFA charter-holders in their further professional development.