Bond Investment Group, a wholly student operated society with the vision of expanding the financial potential of students, recently held its inaugural BIG Investment Banking Competition. It saw seven teams compete for a prize pool worth over $2,000 in cash and prizes.
Teams had to come up with a “pitch” advising Woolworths on a potential acquisition. They were given a document that contained information on Woolworths as well as The Reject Shop and JB Hi-Fi. They were given just two hours to analyse and form a conclusion as to which company presented the most attractive acquisition target for Woolworths.
Each group had to present a 10 minute pitch highlighting the strategic reasons for such a deal, a valuation component, as well as funding implications of the deal.
The judging panel featured academics and industry participants, and included the Faculty’s very own Phillippa Wright and Professor Tim Kiessling.
The quality of the presentations from students surpassed everyone’s expectations and the winners of the competition were:
- SIFE Best Overall Pitch – Winners: Steve Black, Matt Harris, and Jan Mersmann.
- BSA Best Presentation – Winners: Sascha Rankin, Jess McMullen, and Mitchell Burland
Feedback from the students was extremely positive, indicating that participating in the competition was a challenge, but a very rewarding experience.
Overall the competition was a great success and is something that Bond Investment Group will be looking to replicate and expand upon in the future.
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