NIBC is one of the largest investment banking competitions for students to get a glimpse into the industry. It provides students from all over the world the opportunity to solve an investment banking case and make connections with industry professionals and fellow students. This year, the competition was held in Vancouver and 64 teams from universities all around the world participated.
The first round of this year’s NIBC competition involved creating a pitchbook of a company in the fashion industry over a period of 2 months. We looked at the industry, the company position, and the corporate finance activities in the industry, and suggested rationale and ideas for the case company to further increase their share price. We then qualified for the next round which involved solving a mergers and acquisition case in 7 hours. It was an action-packed journey and we are left with memories and knowledge that will last us a lifetime.
On the first day of the final round, we worked on the case which focused on a transaction in the fashion industry. The aim of the case was to structure a deal and build a captivating pitch book to convey our conclusion in a concise manner. The same day, we presented our analysis to the industry professionals in a boardroom.
In such a competition, teamwork is essential. One should be able to rely on their team members and tasks should be delegated in such a way that it leverages the talents of each member to produce a qualitative pitchbook.
Time pressure is another component of the competition. It is very difficult to work in a time constrained environment and thorough preparation is required. It is not unusual in investment banking to work under such pressures and the competition does its best to replicate that scenario.
We were also given some training videos which helped us hone our financial modelling and valuation skills. We were given models most commonly used in the industry and we had to make assumptions to create a base case scenario to estimate the share price of the company in the first round. In the second round, we made assumptions to arrive at the deal price for the merger between the two companies. It was very interesting to be able to apply our academic knowledge to a real case.
The second day was packed with conferences and networking opportunities. There were panel discussions from professionals in investment banking and private equity industries. Senior executives shared insights and knowledge on similar deals and the financial markets. This was followed by a wine and cheese networking event and gala dinner, where the top three finalist teams presented their analysis.
We are grateful to SFU Beedie for sponsoring us in this competition. It was an exciting journey with lots of learning and networking opportunities. It was an honour to represent SFU Beedie amongst a pool of highly ranked universities from all around the world. We highly encourage students to be part of this competition.
Shreya Patel is an SFU Beedie MSc Finance candidate and part of the Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS) where she currently holds the role of Canadian Equity Analyst. You can connect with Shreya via email (shreyap@sfu.ca) or Linkedin.
Priya Garg is an SFU Beedie MSc Finance candidate and part of the Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS) where she currently holds the role of Global Equity Analyst. She is also Co-President of the Graduate Business Women’s Council. You can connect with Priya via email (priya_garg@sfu.ca) or LinkedIn.
Tunc Utku is an SFU Beedie MSc Finance candidate and part of the Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS) where he currently holds the role of quantitative analyst in fixed income team. You can connect with him via email (tunc_utku@sfu.ca) or Linkedin.
Claude Lamothe is an SFU Beedie MSc Finance candidate in the 2018 cohort. You can connect with Claude via email (claude_lamothe@sfu.ca) or LinkedIn.