Vietnamese students shine in financial analysis competition in UK

According to a VNA reporter in London, the final round of the Stock Pitch Competition 2025, organized by The Project Darts, recently took place at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), attracting a large number of Vietnamese students studying in the UK, along with representatives of a number of organizations and financial experts in London.

The event is considered one of the outstanding academic and professional activities, a playground to demonstrate financial analysis capacity and expand career opportunities for the Vietnamese international student community.

The Wanderers team – stock code: MWG has won the Stock Pitch Competition 2025 Championship. Photo: Phong Ha/VNA reporter in the UK

The Stock Pitch Competition is held annually, creating an environment to practice financial analysis skills, business valuation and investment thesis presentation - important requirements for candidates in the field of international finance. This year's competition attracted more than 150 students from many universities across the UK, Vietnam and several other countries.

After 3 months of practice sessions and qualifying rounds, the 4 best teams including Everest, Peak, Vietstocks and Wanderers made it to the final round. The teams chose to analyze stocks of large listed companies in Vietnam such asFPT Corporation, Mobile World Group (code MWG) and Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank - Techcombank (code TCB), demonstrating confidence in evaluating the business model and domestic market prospects from the perspective of international investors.

The final round was attended by four judges, who are financial experts working in London and Ho Chi Minh City, including representatives from Dragon Capital, UBS, Julius Baer and several international financial groups. The direct feedback from the judging panel created a serious atmosphere, reflecting the nature of a professional stock presentation in the investment industry. Many judges assessed that the quality of this year's exam had clearly improved, demonstrating the ability to quantitatively analyze, synthesize information and present coherently of Vietnamese students.

As a result, the Wanderers team won the championship with their presentation on MWG stock. The team presented arguments on the company's restructuring strategy, the recovery prospects of the retail market and the ability to improve profit margins in the coming period. The Vietstock and Everest teams ranked second and third respectively, while the BACKD Capital team was voted the favorite team and participated in the presentation outside the scoreboard.

The Organizing Committee awarded the runner-up team. Photo: Phong Ha/VNA reporter in the UK

According to Mr. Le Phuc Khoa (University of South Wales), representative of the Wanderers team, the sponsorship and professional support from many experienced experts in the financial field helped the members approach professional investment thinking and accumulate practical experience in business analysis. He said that one of the most important requirements is the ability to identify the outstanding factors of the business, especially the differences in valuation that the market may not have seen. This is considered a factor that helps the analysis make an impression on the jury. In addition, a coherent, concise and easy-to-understand presentation is also an important criterion that contributes to improving the effectiveness of stock presentations.

Many students consider the competition to be highly practical, especially in the context of an increasingly competitive UK job market. Candidates have the opportunity to apply academic knowledge into practice, practice logical thinking, presentation and argumentation skills - key factors in recruitment in the financial sector.

Audience member Nguyen Tien Phong (UCL University) expressed his impression of the performance of Vietnamese students, saying that the professional capacity of domestic students is not inferior to that of British students, especially in fields requiring analytical thinking such as finance and the stock market. He said that the main difference lies in the level of access to information about domestic businesses and markets. If provided with adequate data and support from a network of experts and the international student community, Vietnamese students are fully capable of competing equally with local students. The audience also commented that quickness, a progressive spirit and high adaptability are advantages that help Vietnamese students promote their effectiveness when participating in stock analysis and market research.

The exchange and connection space in the program also helps students approach experts working at investment banks, investment funds and international consulting organizations, expanding their professional network and increasing internship and job opportunities in the UK. The teams' choice to analyze Vietnamese stocks also contributes to spreading the image of Vietnamese enterprises to the international community, while strengthening the understanding of the domestic market for young people studying far from home.

Scene of the opening round of the Stock Pitch Competition 2025 finals. Photo: Phong Ha/VNA reporter in the UK

The Project Darts - the organizer of the competition - was founded in 2022 by a group of Vietnamese students studying in the UK with the goal of supporting career skills and building an academic community in the fields of finance, consulting and strategy. After 3 years of operation, the project has attracted thousands of members and become a familiar address for Vietnamese students interested in finance and business.

According to the representative of the Organizing Committee and founder of The Project Darts, Ms. Bui Phuong Hong - a strategic consultant at McKinsey & Company, the selection of the VN30 basket of stocks as the theme of this year's competition stems from two main objectives. First of all, the Organizing Committee wishes to create conditions for candidates to gain a deeper understanding of the context and driving force of Vietnam's economic development through research on leading enterprises. In addition, many Vietnamese enterprises in recent years have attracted great attention from international investors, becoming notable case studies. Therefore, organizing a VN30 stock analysis competition in London is considered to be in line with the trend and has practical significance for the Vietnamese international student community.

In terms of future orientation, The Project Darts plans to expand the scale of the Stock Pitch Competition, aiming to attract Vietnamese students in many European countries, while strengthening cooperation with investment funds, businesses and educational institutions to improve professional quality. The project representative said the long-term goal is to build the competition into a regional academic playground for Vietnamese students, contributing to the development of high-quality financial human resources and promoting connections between international students and the domestic and international labor market.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/du-hoc/du-hoc-sinh-viet-nam-toa-sang-trong-cuoc-thi-phan-tich-tai-chinh-tai-anh-20251209075544628.htm