Bandar Seri Begawan, 11 September 2020 – The third installment of the Baiduri Capital Investment Challenge (BCIC) concluded with a prize presentation ceremony this afternoon at Baiduri Bank Headquarters at 1 Jalan Gadong.

Two teams from this year’s BCIC exceeded their own expectations and secured profits at the conclusion of the Investment Challenge – Harvest Capital from Universiti Brunei Darussalam managed to make BND 4,968 profit, while Investscape from Politeknik Brunei came out of the BCIC with BND 720.60 profit.

Nur Haziqah Jahirah binti Haji Osman, the team leader for Harvest Capital, said that her team learnt a valuable lesson in being steadfast in making decisions after their initial indecisiveness at the start of the Challenge resulted in them only making a small profit.

She said: “After our initial hesitation in the beginning, we continued with our research and found a company we really wanted to invest in. Through the guidance and information provided to us by our mentors combined with our own risk appetite, we were confident to go all in and invest in just one company. That bold move fortunately paid off for us in the end.”

Meanwhile, Mohammad Iqbal bin Haji Fikri, the team leader for Investscape said: “The Investment Challenge has been a humbling experience. It’s taught us the importance of conducting thorough research on investment options and, at the same time, to keep a close eye on the stock market.”

Throughout the Challenge, participants were given direct access to licensed dealers who acted as their mentors and offered valuable insights and advice into the world of trading and investing. Both teams added that the access to these mentors were important towards their decision-making process throughout the challenge.

Iqbal added: “The mentors from Baiduri Capital helped increase our awareness on the various facets of investing as well as the different tools and services that Baiduri Capital provides for investors. Their consultation service has been a great benefit for us as new investors.”

This edition’s BCIC began in October last year and ended in April. This time, the participants were made up of undergraduate students from Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Universiti Teknologi Brunei and Politeknik Brunei. Each team comprised four members and were given BND5,000 as initial capital to invest into any of the securities listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX), Malaysia Stock Exchange (BURSA), Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx), China A-Shares (SSE-A) or the US Stock Exchange (NYSE MKT LLC, NYSE and NASDAQ). Any profits that were earned by the teams in the challenge were retained by them.

Mr. Peng Eng Soon, General Manager of Baiduri Capital, said: “The aim of the Baiduri Capital Investment Challenge is to cultivate awareness and generate interest in financial investment and capital markets. This is our third time holding it and we have received encouraging feedback from participants. They have shared how important it was that the Investment Challenge provided them with access to Baiduri Capital’s digital platform, which is the same tool that our full-fledged investors use. The BCIC also gave them the rare opportunity to apply what they have learnt in the classroom and through their own research in a practical way. Not only that, they are able to gain real trading experience and reap the rewards from trading.”

At the prize presentation, Mr. Peng presented certificates of participation to the teams. Harvest Capital and Investscape were also presented with congratulatory trophies for recording profits in this edition’s Investment Challenge. Present at the event were licensed dealers and senior financial planners from Baiduri Capital.

The Baiduri Capital Investment Challenge is an annual initiative undertaken by Baiduri Capital as part of its efforts to cultivate and raise awareness on investments, capital markets services and securities trading as well as support AMBD’s goal of increasing investment literacy among the general public.

Established in 2015, Baiduri Capital is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Baiduri Bank, specializing in securities trading and investment products. Through its secure web-based online securities trading portal, the first in the country, customers can trade in SGX (Singapore), HKEx (Hong Kong), China A-Share, Bursa Malaysia, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), NASDAQ Stock Market as well as the NYSE MKT LLC (AMEX). On top of securities trading, Baiduri Capital also offers Unit Trusts, ETFs, Bonds and Investment Linked Life Insurance plans. For more information about Baiduri Capital products and services, visit their website at www.baiduri.com.bn/baiduricapital, email [email protected] or call 226 8593/4.