SHANGHAI, December 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- From December 7 to 8, 2024, the 2024 International Youth Leadership Finance Summit (IYLFS), hosted by the Master of Finance Program (MF) of the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, was grandly held.
This year's summit, which has been completely revamped and upgraded, focuses on the four core keywords of "experience", "learning", "fun" and "challenge". It aims to build a learning exchange platform and deeply promote the application of theory to practice. It has designed three major financial workshops, "primary", "secondary" and "quantitative". It has specially invited well-known professors from Jiaotong University's Gaojin School of Finance to bring professional knowledge on mergers and acquisitions, global equity investments and quantitative investment-related fields to students from all over the world.
This summit has received a warm response since its launch, and students from all over the world have participated enthusiastically, attracting students from well-known domestic universities such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Fudan University, Renmin University of China, Nankai University, Zhejiang University, Nanjing University, Zhejiang University, as well as students from internationally renowned universities such as University of California, Berkeley, New York University, emlyon business school, Heidelberg University, Stockholm School of Economics, and University of Liverpool. More than 200 contestants gathered together, with more than 20% of them being international students. Everyone showed their youthful style on the international competition platform and jointly drew a blueprint for financial development.
Opening speech: Building an international exchange platform and creating an interdisciplinary environment
At the opening ceremony on December 7, Professor Li Xianglin, Academic Director of SAIF's Master of Finance Program, extended a warm welcome to all students participating in the 2024 International Youth Leaders Finance Summit. Professor Li said that the summit, as an international exchange platform, provides students from major well-known universities around the world with an opportunity to communicate and dialogue with academic professors and industry experts on an equal footing. This summit does not set a "finance" major threshold, and creates an interdisciplinary learning environment for students from different professional backgrounds. Through learning and practice, it helps students deepen their knowledge and understanding of finance and broaden their international perspectives. He hopes that everyone will make good friends through this event and lay a solid foundation for growing into leading talents who lead global financial reform and development.
Summit highlights: Combining "global vision" with "local characteristics"
Ms. Yang Lin, the project leader of SAIF's Master of Finance program, introduced the original intention of holding the summit and its development history to the guests and students. The summit is one of SAIF's most iconic brand events and one of the most influential and credible university business competitions in China. Since its inception in 2013, the summit has been held for 11 consecutive sessions. From financial technology, blockchain to green finance and ESG, the topics discussed at the summit not only keep up with the hot topics of the times, but also show a trend of combining "global vision" with "local characteristics". Every year, the summit attracts outstanding teams from dozens of top universities at home and abroad to participate, and thousands of people apply.
After careful polishing by the organizing committee, the 2024 Summit has been completely redesigned, featuring four highlights: immersive financial experience, compatibility with diverse backgrounds, top financial platforms, and welfare surprises. It is committed to inviting young students with aspirations from all over the world to explore the mysteries of the primary market, secondary market, and quantitative finance from the perspective of combining theory and practice. For students with no basic knowledge of finance, this is an excellent starting point for efficient entry; for students with a certain foundation, this is a battlefield for integration and consolidation of key skills; for students who are determined to deepen their careers in the financial field, this is a stage for in-depth research and display of their expertise and talents.
Three workshops focusing on financial sub-sectors
This summit specially opened three workshops: "Level 1 Special Session", "Level 2 Special Session" and "Quantitative Special Session", providing diversified options for students who are interested in different financial sub-fields.
The "Level 1 Special Session" specially invited Jiang Zhan, an expert in mergers and acquisitions, restructuring and scientific and technological innovation finance, professor of Gaojin, and academic director and executive director of the EED project, as a lecturer to introduce students to knowledge about mergers and acquisitions. Students formed groups to analyze listed companies in the corresponding tracks based on different M&A themes, and analyzed their feasibility and important matters in the M&A process by finding targets suitable for M&A.
The "Secondary Special Session" specially invited Qiu Wenjun, a visiting professor of practice at Gaojin, who once worked for JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America and participated in the issuance of China's first sovereign dollar bond, as a lecturer to systematically introduce the selection, investment and forecasting methods of global equity assets to the students. Under the guidance of the teacher, the participants proposed the best strategy for the given project through group cooperation.
The "Quantitative Session" specially invited Gaojin Practice Professor Yin Zhihao, who has more than 20 years of experience in quantitative analysis and investment research. He has been engaged in quantitative analysis and team management in many internationally renowned financial institutions such as JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, HSBC, and Wells Fargo, as a lecturer. He will lead students to explore the battlefield of data modeling and strategy backtesting with Python, help contestants to initially establish the foundation of quantitative analysis, and complete the corresponding subject challenges by teaching everyone to understand the concepts of quantitative finance and their specific practical applications.
Competition Overview: "Seamless Connection" Due to Interest and Passion
This summit is the first time in recent years that the event has been held offline. The Master of Finance Program of SAIF arranged for current students to volunteer as volunteers to answer questions for the participating teams. Before the event started, heated discussions had already taken place in various WeChat groups, and participating students from all over the world were "seamlessly connected" together because of their interest and love for finance. After the three workshops, students from each group carried out intensive and fruitful research and discussions based on the competition rules of their respective tracks. Until late at night, the discussion room was still brightly lit, and everyone continued to spark ideas in in-depth exchanges.
Competition review: innovative methods and diverse expressions
On the morning of December 8, Professor Hu Jie of SAIF, SAIF Master of Finance alumnus and Vice Director of Fosun Wealth Wang De, InterChina Financing and M&A Manager Roger Camats; Associate Professor Li Nan of SAIF, SAIF Master of Finance alumnus and Founding Partner of KS Capital Zhang Kangkang, SAIF Master of Finance Program Director Yang Lin; Professor Yin Zhihao of SAIF, Zhang Zhetao, Investment Strategist/Vice President of Carlyle China, and Liu Xunzhi, SAIF Master of Finance alumnus and Quantitative Research Institute of Jiukun Investment, respectively served as judges for the "First Level Special Session", "Second Level Special Session" and "Quantitative Special Session" competitions of this summit. They commented and scored the performance of each team from a professional perspective.
The judges said that the international vision, critical thinking that integrates theory and practice, and thinking and understanding of financial sub-sectors demonstrated by the participants of this summit were gratifying. The students showed clear structure and logic, diversified and innovative viewpoints, and excellent oral presentation skills. The judges actively interacted with everyone, conducted in-depth discussions on the report topics, and gave comprehensive feedback and highly instructive suggestions on the performance of each team.
Award Ceremony: Fulfilling mission and contributing to social development
After fierce competition and strict selection, 17 teams from Peking University, Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Fudan University, Renmin University of China, Zhejiang University, Nanjing University, NYU Shanghai, University of Michigan, University of Liverpool, IQS Management School of Spain, Atveld University and National University of Science and Technology of Pakistan won the first, second and third prizes of the 2024 International Youth Leaders Finance Summit. 15 students from Peking University, Renmin University of China, Central University of Finance and Economics and other universities won the "Outstanding Individual Award" for their outstanding performance.
Wang Tan, Vice Dean of GJU and Chair Professor of Finance, expressed his heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to the winning teams and students in his speech. He encouraged everyone to take this summit as a starting point, explore financial issues in depth, fulfill their mission with professionalism and social responsibility, and contribute to social development. The students were deeply encouraged and inspired, and said they would cheer up and build on the momentum.
In just two days, the summit allowed students to feel the charm of finance in the exchange of theory and practice, and to establish deep friendships in the colorful and interesting interactive sessions. By independently shooting and creating Vlogs, they left unforgettable and beautiful youthful memories for the event, enhanced their understanding of each other and promoted collective cohesion in the all-night team collaboration, and gained wisdom and strength to explore new trends and new directions at the forefront of finance.
