Aspiring Investors Trade their Way to Trophy

Akash Jajoo ’21 M.S., who has experience with daily trading and analyzing stocks, is eager to learn as much as he can about the world of finance. He recently managed a team of traders, serving as captain of the University of New Haven’s team that took part in the 9th annual University Trading Challenge.

"The most important takeaway from this competition was managing a real-world situation and learning how to deal with losses and managing risks," said Jajoo, a native of India. "Experiences like this help students understand the real world of finance, including how Wall Street works and the emotions behind trading stocks."

An open competition for graduate students in finance and economics, the University Trading Challenge endeavors to help students better understand the scope and breadth of the financial markets. The team led by Jajoo captured first place in the Foreign Exchange Trading Challenge in the month-long competition that featured teams from UCLA, Fordham, and New York University, among others.

Fang Chen, Ph.D., associate professor of finance, says the students were wonderful representatives of the University.

"It was great to win," he said. "We had strong competitors. This was a perfect experiential learning opportunity. The competition enabled students to put their education to the test and use the skills they developed in the classroom in an active trading environment."

"It also motivated me to look beyond my textbooks to explore techniques and strategies for successful trading."Chaitali Chinoy ’21 M.S.

Students conducted simulation-based trading of securities such as equities, bonds, and futures, and had the opportunity to experiment with different strategies. The competition culminated with an event at Bentley University in Waltham, Mass., in which participants presented a case study analysis and a portfolio.

For Chaitali Chinoy ’21 M.S., the competition enabled her to develop a deeper understanding of real-world trading and offered a wonderful opportunity for her to meet other aspiring traders and industry experts.

"It helped me apply what I have learned about equities valuation and fixed income analysis in my classes," she said. "It also motivated me to look beyond my textbooks to explore techniques and strategies for successful trading. My favorite part of the competition was pit trading, since it was a great learning opportunity, and it was fun to learn how trading is done on the floor of the stock exchanges."