The 2023 China Future Financial Analysts Competition, jointly organised by the Beijing Financial Development Centre and the CFA Institute, came to an end recently. The IEB Squad from the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) performed well in the competition, and their report entitled "Challenges and Opportunities - An Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Fintech on the Development of Commercial Banks and the Financial System in China" was selected as one of the outstanding research reports.

To participate in the competition, students from various universities formed their own teams to write research reports in groups of 3-5 students (teams could be formed across universities, degrees and years). This year, more than 2,000 students from 313 universities at home and abroad (including 27 overseas universities) registered, submitting more than 200 reports.

Among the 286 universities in China that participated, the number of students from the top 5 universities exceeded 100; among the top 50 universities, 39 universities participated in the competition, with more than 400 students registering, accounting for 30% of the total number of applicants. This year's competition also saw enthusiastic applications from overseas students, with 27 renowned universities from nine countries/regions taking part, 12 of which are ranked in the world’s top 50 by QS, including the University of Oxford (UK), National University of Singapore (Singapore), Cornell University (USA), University of California, Berkeley (USA) and Australian National University (Australia).

All the team members that produced the 60 outstanding research reports will be included in the "Beijing Future Finance Talent Pool" created by the Beijing Local Financial Supervision Authority and the CFA Institute. This means that these students will have much better chances of securing internships at top financial institutions in the future.

The Nottingham University Business School China (NUBS China) team, the five-member IEB Squad, is made up of one postgraduate student, one Year 4 student and three Year 2 students who have just started their finance studies. Here are some of their reflections after the competition.

Juanyu Lin: We successfully visualised abstract concepts

Every step of this competition was a brand-new challenge for us. At the beginning of the problem-analysis phase, we assessed the systemic risks faced by fintech companies, starting from the recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. After that, we delved deeper into the definition of fintech technology and identified the subjects of the study, data sources and research tools.

How can we represent the level of development of fintech technology with quantitative indicators? To address this, we came up with the FinTech Development Index, as well as the percentage of fintech talent in commercial banks. After further reflection, we used the number of different fintech technology patents as explanatory variables, a comparative trending analysis and a regression analysis of risk-profit levels. Through this novel perspective, we managed to visualise abstract concepts with standard mathematical models and clear data.

Zhiyan Li: Be more open to trial and error

As a third-year finance student, I was really surprised to get this award. In the beginning, it was hard to follow the teacher's ideas on how to solve the problem and frame the report, so I had to record the meeting and listen to the playback over and over again, and find relevant research papers to study. After understanding the problem better, the teacher then taught us how to build a qualified framework and what criteria should be used to select valid information. It was also at this time that I understood the importance of planning and strategy, and the criteria for presenting content and the strategy for selecting information for a project.

Then, when scaffolding the information onto the framework, I understood the concept of effective information: we should present ideas that are based on facts. In other words, we should form our own opinion after critically reading information on the subject (what are the possible ideas that can explain the problem or phenomenon, and which one is the optimal solution and why) and we should also have our own data analysis to support our conclusions.

I am also grateful to the team captain and my teammates for their dedication. I learnt a lot from them about access to information, professional knowledge, time planning, mindset adjustments and other areas that I could not learn in class. Compared to our ranking, these are actually more important. At our age, we are presented with many challenges and opportunities. Therefore, we should be more open to trial and error, and experience more to find the right direction for ourselves.

Yuning Ren: The transformation of a newbie

It was an honour to complete the report under the guidance of my teachers and seniors. The experience of reviewing and learning together with my teammates made the experience so vivid and wonderful. From being a "newbie" who did not know much about fintech and the requirements of research, to completing a series of data collections and analyses, I learned a lot from my teammates and received a lot of support and encouragement from them throughout the process.

I believe that in the future, I will still be bold enough to seek out opportunities to learn from trials and experiences, and to constantly look for the right direction for my development.

Lingsi Kong: Refine your ideas and express them effectively

My initial motivation for participating in the competition was actually to have more contact with teachers and to expand the dimensions and depth of my knowledge. However, as the group work progressed, I gradually realised that it was very much like generating a thesis because you need to collect data and read the papers on your own, and then formulate and verify your ideas. So, for me, the biggest gain was improving my ability to refine my own ideas after reading the extensive literature. In particular, it was important to express ideas effectively in the group discussions, which greatly facilitated group work and reduced the confusion of having a pile of scattered literature during our meetings. In addition, reading through a large number of research papers on the banking industry and fintech companies has increased my understanding of the risks of fintech development on the operations of commercial banks, as well as my grasp of the current competitive landscape of the financial industry.

Of course, I also encountered some difficulties in the process, such as consolidating the collected data, and how to use STATA. However, we managed to solve these problems by seeking the help of our teachers as well as our classmates.

Jing Qian: Transforming theoretical knowledge into practical experience

Firstly, participating in this competition allowed me to learn in-depth about the application of fintech in the modern banking industry. Through a literature review, data analysis and model building, our team conducted in-depth research step by step, gradually turning abstract concepts into concrete numerical indicators. In the process, I not only greatly expanded my horizons and depth of thinking, but also gained a deep understanding of the importance of fintech to the development of the banking industry, which will be of great help in all my future studies.

Secondly, I am very grateful to all my teammates for their cooperation and trust in coordinating the work. During the high-intensity and high-volume competition, we held weekly discussions, updated our progress promptly and pooled our ideas to solve various problems. In the process, everyone played to their strengths and values, and I got a lot of inspiration from all of them.

Finally, this competition gave us a deeper understanding of fintech’s impact on the banking industry. We were also able to translate our theoretical knowledge into practical experience. I would especially like to thank my two mentors and Ms Yu for their support and assistance. Participating in this competition has been a very valuable experience in my life, and I will apply what I have learnt in my future work and study, and continue to keep an eye on fintech and the banking industry, constantly learning and exploring new developments in this field.