NUS Investment Society Year Book 2018

INVEST

CONTENTS
President’sMesage|03
Vision&Mision|04
Departments|05
OrganisationalStructure
ChrisLeeSusanto|07
DavidGerald|12
YeoSuiChuan|14
RelativeValuation|15
TheDoves|18
AgainstTheHawks
NUSInvestment|21
BankingConference
NUS-SGXStockPitch|22
Competition
AlphaPlayFX|23
NUSInvestment|24
Chalenge
FA101|25
FX101|26
QF101|27
WeeklyWorkshops|28
InternalActivities|29
01
02
03
04
05

NicholasTan
President
15thExecutiveCommitee
President’s
Mesage

VISION
Tobeaglobalyrecognizedinvestmentclubdedicatedto
providingpremierinvestoreducationandhoningtalented
studentsfortheinvestmentandnanceworld
MISSION
Topromotenancialliteracyandinvestmentknowledge
amongstudentinvestmententhusiasts
Tocreatenetworkingopportunitiesandinteractions
betweenindustryprofessionalsandstudents
Toempowerstudentsdedicatedtopursuingacareerin
nancewithskilsvaluedintheindustry,includingthe
useofnancialandanalyticssoftware
4

ORGANISATIONALSTRUCTURE
GLOBAL
MACRO
6

ChrisLee
Founderat
SusantoRe- inkWealth.com
Starting my investing journey
ItItofficiallybegan when Iwasstillserving
the National Service (NS). During
my time in NS,wheneverIwasfree on
theweekendsIwould search online,on
how to investin stocks profitably and
sustainably. One day, I chanced upon
the word “Value Investing” online and
was intrigued. I began to read more
about the concept of Value Investing
and studied the investing philosophy
from the father of Value Investing,
Benjamin Graham’s and his student,
Warren Buffett. Afterwards, I started
my reading habits through buying
books like “The Intelligent Investor”
and “Security Analysis” by Benjamin
Graham. Iused to be unaware of the
technical terms used in the investing
world, however over time I became
better,afterlearning it.
Personalinvesting philosophy
To me,stocksare notjusttickerssymbols
with prices that fluctuate every
second.Behind everystock,there isan
underlying business.Mymain investing
strategy is the use of “Mispricing”.
Sometimes,there isa mispricing in the
value ofthe business and the price at
which the business is trading in the
stock market. That’s the opportunity
for us value investors. This strategy
complements my core theory of inversion.Inversion
refersto alwaysscrutinising
every investing idea, regarding
why itwould fail.Thiswould resultin
us being more conservative and Ibelieve
thatis the key to protecting and
growing wealth in the long run.
Key traitsto being a good investor
A good investormusthave the ability
to think independently and to manage
their emotions well – from clouding
their judgement,whilst being able to
analyse and conclude accurately and
decisively. Of course, be very careful
aboutoverconfidence.
M otivation in founding Re-Think
W ealth
Backin 2015,Iknew thatto beagood
investor,Ineed to be a lifelong learner.To
be one,Icreated Re-Think
W ealth, which
was a blogging
platform for me
to reflect on my
investment processes
and to
share it with
others.

Following marketswhilstschooling
W hen Iwas stillin Singapore Management
University (SMU), studying businessmanagement,Ineverhad
any difficultywith
myinvestments.
First, Ido not follow the markets. According
to my investment philosophy,
there is no need to follow the markets
except for major company announcements,
quarterly and annualreporting.
So long as nothing fundamental has
changed in the company Iam vested in,
my thesis remains, and the the only
thing Ineeded to do isnothing.
Second, investing is a game in which
people think that the more buying and
selling actionsweundertake, thebetter
the results willbe. Ithink that this is
false and the converse true, that with
investing, the right inaction beats
action.
Advice fornovice investors
1.Understand yourcharacterwell– see
ifyou are suited to actively pick stocks
or passively invest in low-cost index
fundslike the VOO and SPY (S&P 500).
2.Find a mentor to guide you. It will
accelerate your learning curve by years
and saveyou thousandsofdollarseasily,
from the mistake and lossesyou can potentially
make. Irun the RW OA.io VIM
Club in which I mentor investors on
value investing and options selling. If
you are interested,you can learn more
about it at ValueInvestingMentorship.com
3. Be patient and do not forget the
numberone rule which is to neverlose
money. CapitalPreservation is key. W e
invest with the goal to preserve and
grow our capital. Preservation comes
first,growing issecond.
8

Hisbestinvestmentand the thoughtflow behind the idea
One of my best investment ideas was investing in Mobile Telesystems
(NYSE:MBT),which wasa solid beton the recoveryofthe Russian economy
back then.MBT was Russia’s biggest telecommunications and was a
more profitable and well-managed companycompared to itsfiercestcompetitorin
Russia – VimpelCom (NYSE:VIP).Back then,the stock price of
MBTwascrashing dueto thefallin valueoftheRussian currency,Rubbles
due to the US sanctionson Crimeria annexation and falling oilprices.The
over-pessimism ofthemarketfrom themacro news(which wasnotmaterial)resulted
in the stock price falling waymore than the value ofitsbusiness
(valued it using Discounted Cashflows and H Dividend Discount
Model).Ithen tookadvantageofthemispricing and madeover30 percent
in which thatstock took up nearly50 percentofmyoverallportfolio.
A mistake made while investing
ForMobile Telesystemsand KeppelCorporation,the mistake thatImade
wasthatIdid notaveragedown furthereven though Ihad high conviction
thatthe price wasstillundervalued when itdropped furthernearlyby50
percent.There isa conceptthatsaid “Ifwe are notwilling to buyon that
price,sellit.Ifwearenotwilling to sellon thatprice,buyit”.Ofcourse,
a balance is needed since investing is so dynamic, there is no right
answer.ButIhavelearntthataveraging down attherightpriceduring extreme
pessimism,would mostlikely lead to a good outcome – given the
factthatwe have high certaintyaboutthe company.

David
Gerald
The vision for SIAS is to
have an educated,engaged
and empowered investing
communityin Singapore.
ItIt is unfortunate to see
manySingaporeanswasting
their hard-earned monies
on investmentstheydo not
understand.
Investing without knowledge
is gambling,and this
habitisharmfulto notonly
familiesbutalso to our
society.
Investorsalso do notfocus
on the standardsofcorporate
governance practices
of the companies they
investin.
Founder,President& CEO
SecuritiesInvestorsAssociation (Singapore)
10

Advice on how retailinvestorscan
make an assessment of a firm’s
management to make an informed
investment
The problem isthatevaluating managementisdifficultbecause
so many
aspects of the job are intangible.
Fortunately,thereareseveralfactors
to look outfor:
a) Is the managementcompensation
linked to performance ofthe companyand
interestshareholders?Generally,
you want to make sure that
CEOsin the same industriesand size
havesimilarcompensation levelsand
are notoverpaid.You mustbe suspi
ciousifa managermakesan obscene
amountofmoneywhile the company
suffers.
b)W hat is the length of tenure of
the CEO? A greatexample isGeneral
Electric whose former CEO, Jack
W elch, was with the company for
around 20 years before he retired.
Manyherald him asbeing one ofthe
bestmanagersofalltime.
c) W hatkind ofgoals has the management
set out for the company?
Does the company have a mission
statement? A good mission statementcreatesgoalsformanagement,
employees, stockholders and even
partners.
d)How long does the management
hold theirshares? Flipping sharesto
make a quick buck is one thing;investing
forthe long term isanother.
Factors that may change the investment
landscape for retailinvestors
Asa personalopinion,Robo-Advisorywillchange
the waywe investbecause
ofthe diminishing role forintermediaries
and advisors.W ith Robo-advisory,
you can now invest in
fractional shares. This would make
developing a portfolio easierforthe
young investor. However, you must
still understand the underlying investment.
How SIAS helps investors adapt
to such changes
As the role of intermediaries decline,
investors need to step up to
educate and empower themselves.
Financialliteracy and investor education
willbe of paramount importanceastheresponsibilitywillbeon
the investorsto charthisdestiny
Advice for young students looking
to invest
Startearlybutstartsmall.Theearlieryou
start,the easieritisto make
itahabit.Aswith time,yourmonies
will compound. For example, if a
25-year-old saves and invests $500
monthly at an average rate of 6%
p.a., over 40 years, he or she will
have$1 million upon retiring.Bydelaying
just10 years,you willneed to
double the monthly amount to
$1000 to achieve the same result.

The founding ofSIAS
ItIttook place in 1999 and was quite
unexpected and accidental.My passion
has always been about doing
something within the fourwallsofa
court.I’vebeen adefencecounsel,a
public prosecutor,and a magistrate.
In September1998,when the Malaysian
authorities froze the shares of
172,000 Singapore citizens who invested
in 112 Malaysian listed companies,there
wasno voice forthese
stranded investors since the Malaysian
government did not want the
Singapore authorities to represent
them.To break the stalemate on the
settlementofthe issue,Idecided to
come forward and form SIAS to provide
the voice and representation.
Drive for investment education
and governance related issues
Itisquite rewarding to see ordinary
people,as wellas the young executives,
improving their finances and
managing theirmonies wellthrough
education and improved knowledge
ofinvesting.
Currentwork involvement
My work currently involvesplanning
and implementing SIAS programmes,
supervising and providing leadership
to staff.
SIAS programmesinclude:
1)InvestorEducation Programmes
2)Corporate Governance
Programmes
3)InvestorRights
4)Dispute Resolution
5)Organizing town-hallmeetings
6)Issuing pressstatements
7)Publish commentarieson
corporate issues
Forthe above aforesaid programmes
and activities, especially the press
statements,moreinformation can be
found on www.sias.org.sg. I also
serve on variouscommittees,forexample,
SGX Listing Advisory Committee,
MAS Corporate Governance
Council,ISCA EthicsCommittee and
acting asan Adviserto variousprofessionalorganizations
Investments in companies are made
byinvestorsbased on trustthattheir
monies will be governed well. In
SIAS, we want to promote investor
education widelythrough community
centres by reaching out to the
masses and also track and grade
listed companies on their corporate
governance practices, in collaboration
with NUS-CGIO.
12

Yeo,
SuiChuan
FidelityInternational,Research Associate
Back in NUS InestmentSociety
My time in NUS Invest gave me wider exposure to the different ways in how
people think about investments.This has provided me with lenses of multiple
frameworks,which Icould then use to analyse stocksfrom differentsectors,or
even look atthe same stock from differentperspectives.
Advice to young graduates
Investing isin itselfauniquejourneythatisverydependenton one’spersonality.
Use that to your advantage. Curiosity and logic, together with the ability to
manage youremotionsisessential.
Investmentstrategy forrookies
Do read the classic investmentbooks to learn about
the differentstylesofinvesting,oreven trading.Do
notbeafraid to experimentand trydifferentmethods
until you find something that works for you, both
emotionallyand monetarily.Alwaysthink aboutwhat
you wantto achieve with yourinvestments in terms
ofrisk and return.
One investment strategy I can recommend is
dollarcostaverage into an indexETF.
IfIfyou are interested in seeking an internship
or career in the investment management industry,
you should get your hands dirty and
startinvesting foryourself.A paperorvirtual
portfolio would be good,so long asyou treat
itseriously.Theearlyexperiencewillbepriceless.
M otivationsbehind currentjob
The intellectualchallenge ofanalysing and
understanding a company,accompanied with
the brutalscorecard thatisthe stock market.
In the long term,the numberswilltellyou if
you are rightorwrong.There isno hiding.

Greatestchallengesfaced atwork
I try to prioritise and optimise my
processes allthe time.This includes
the mundane tasks, such as how I
cataloguedatato themore'real' aspects
in knowing what are the important
drivers for the different
typesofbusinessesand ignoring the
rest.
Time management is essential to
managing these challenges.Ibelieve
it'sallaboutreturn on time,with liquidity
and upside potential being
the unfortunate constraints.
W hether retail investors often
lose out to institutionalinvestors
due to lack of access to information
and expertise
I don't think expertise is relevant
here because at the end of the day,
you are comparing professionalswith
casualinvestors.On average,thereis
going to be a gap in expertise and
thatisunderstandable.
Retailinvestorsdefinitelyhave a disadvantage
in access to information
because theydon'thave management
or industry access.But in the spirit
ofthe question,there are otherimpportant
factors to consider. Institutionalinvestorshave
challengesthat
retailinvestors do nothave.Forexample,liquidity
constraints in terms
of the minimum size of investment,
as wellas terms ofredemptions and
time horizon. Retail investors basicallyhave
a perpetualtime horizon.
14

There are severalmethodsofvaluing equities,which include intrinsic valuation and relative
valuation.Intrinsicvaluation attemptsto projectcash flowsforthe companyinto the
future,before finding the presentvalue ofsaid cash flows,in orderto find the “true”
value ofthe company.Such valuation methods however,are often subjectto criticalassumptionssuch
ashow the revenue ofthe company willgrow in the next5 years,orthe
discountrate thatisused to find the presentvalue ofthe company.Relative valuation,on
the otherhand,doesnotrelyon intrinsicassumptionsbutinstead hingeson empiricalob
servations.In essence,relativevaluation comparesthetargetto arangeofsimilarorcomparable
companiesand triesto find an extrapolated value ofthe target.
In thisarticle,the meritsand drawbacksofrelative valuation willbe evaluated,and furtherdemonstrated
through a shortexample on how one can perform relative valuation.
WhatisRelativeValuation?
InIn measuring the value ofa company,relative
valuation assessesthe company'svalue
relative to peers in the same industry or
companies with similar business models.
This firstly involves establishing a universe
ofcomparablecompaniesforthetarget.The
companies are then benchmarked against
one another – by using trading multiples,
such as the price to earnings ratio. This
then provides an industry mean ormedian,
as wellas a trading multiple range,which
can be extrapolated to find the valuation
range forthe target.
WhyitWorks
The fundamentalpremise ofrelative valuation
lies in the assumption that companies
which are similarprovide a good reference
pointforvaluing a target.Thiscould be because
they share key businessand financial
characteristics, revenue drivers and face
similarrisks.
The Upside and Downside
Proponents of relative valuation are favorable
towards how relative valuation does
not depend on the future projections of a
company's cash flow, unlike methods such
asthediscounted cash flow.Moreover,relative
valuation takes into account current
marketconditionsaswell.
On the otherhand,opponents would nonetheless
opine that relative valuation does
notreflectissuessuch ascompaniestrading
'cheap',relative to comparablesbecause of
fundamental reasons (i.e. pending lawsuits).

How Do We Use RelativeValuation
1.Screening forcomparables
As explained,the choice ofthe comparable universe is the bedrock decision fortrading
comps(comparables).Getthe comparable universe wrong and the valuation willbe done
wrong.Thekeyideato thinkaboutwhen selecting thecomparableuniverseisthattheselection
isattempting to replicatethecharacteristicsofthetargetcompanythough aportfolio
ofcompanies.Such characteristicsofcompaniesincludethoseofthatwhich operate
within the same geographicallocation,orwith a similarbusinessmodel,ora similarfinancialmetrics.
2.Collectthe CompsData
W ith the comparable universe now selected,sufficientinformation mustnow be collected
to allow the calculation and justification ofthe comparable multiples.Listed below are
some ofthe mostcommonlyused metrics.
Enterprise Value
Otherwiseknown asthecostofbuying the
rightto the whole ofan enterprises’core
cash flow.
Enterprise Value = Marketvalue ofequity
+ debtofcompany + minority interests –
cash and cash investments – investments
in associatesand jointventures
EBITDA
Abbreviated to representEarnings Before Interest,Tax,Depreciation
and Amortization.It
isalsocommonmetricofchoicebyanumberof
analysts,howeverdoeshave itsdrawbacksas
well.This metric fails to reflect changes in
workingcapitalofthecompany,onlyservesas
aroughproxyofthecompany’scashflow,and
also ignores costs of capital expenditure,
leasesandtax.
EBIT
Abbreviated to representEarningsBefore InterestTaxand isanothercommon metricthat
isused in valuation.The metric howevergivesrise to the inconsistency issue because of
the reliance on Depreciation and Amortization numbers.Additionally,in normalizing EBIT
figures,itis also importantto adjustforone-offornon-recurring items in the income
statements.Thisincludesgainsand losseson any sale ofPPE (Property,Plantand Equipment),impairmentlosses
on PPE,acquisition ordivestmentofsubsidiaries,forex gains,
and anyotherone-offincome orexpenses.
16

3.M ultiples
There are mainly 2 typesofmultiplesto consider– equity multiplesand enterprise
multiples.
Firstly,equityvalue multiplestake into accountcapitalstructure in decision making
and recordsthe equity value attributed to the equity holdersofthe company.In addition,the
denominatorisafterinterestexpense.Common multiplesinclude the P/E
ratio,Implied Equity/NetIncome,and Price/Value.
Secondly, enterprise value multiples focus on quality of operations, denominator
before interest expense, and value attributed to both debt and equity holder.
Common multiplesinclude EV/Sales,EV/EBITDA,EV/EBIT,and EV/Otherspecialmultiples.
4.Last Tw elve M onths (LTM )Annualisation
Relative valuation isessentialforusto identifythe expected performance ofa stock
orcompany,in comparison to thatofitspeerswhich have similarcharacteristics.A
valuation based on a multiple and comparable rm can be completed with farfewer
explicit assumptions and far more quickly than a discounted cash ow valuation.
M ore importantly,relative valuation ismuch more likely to reectthe currentmood
of the market, given that it is an attempt to measure relative and not intrinsic
value.Hence,a stock’s trading comparables could vary at differnet phases of the
economiccycle and while multiplesreectthe marketmood,thisimpliesthatusing
relative valuation to estimate the value of an asset can result in values which are
too high when the marketisovervaluaing comparable rms,ortoo low when itisundervaluing
these rms.
Conclusion
Itisthusimportantforone to understand the rationale and key eventspertinentto
the stock orcompany while making judgments,asopposed to blindly following the
multiples,withouthaving made sense ofit.

EUR/USD
The dovesagainstthe hawks
The EURUSD started the yearoffon a relativelypositive note.Year-to-date ithas
gained about2.45% whereasin 2017,the pairgained 14.8% due to severalfactorswhich
undermined thegreenback.However,sincealmostthemiddleofJanuary,the
pairhasbeen trading sidewayslooking fora breakout.
A looming threat of trade tensions is
persistent throughout as the United
States veers towards stronger protectionism.
W hile typically the Eurozone
would notbe overly ruffled by American
sentimtents on trade, under the
current administration, those fears
have become more valid. Given how
USA hasrecentlyimposed tariffson key
trading partnerscoupled with a strong
euro may provide the Trump administration
sufficient reason to consider
tariffs here as well. As per the most
recent European trade data,the Euro
zone’s main trading partner is USA
where a staggering 30% ofexports go
to (Figure 1).
Figure 2:Exportsto EU and Importsfrom USA
Figure 1:Keytrading partners
forthe EU byexport
Moreover, as seen in
Figure 2, the EU’s trade
with USA is more export
dependent than it is
import dependent. As
shown, the Year-on-year
fall in exports is just
0.2% signalling persistent
demand. On the
other hand, the concentration
of American imports
has fallen about
10% YoY, indicating a
slowing demand for
American goods.
The implication isthatpotentialtariffson the EU willmore drasticallyaffectEU
than it willaffect USA. Moreover a softening demand for American products
meansthatcountertariffsbytheEU willprovidelessleveragenow than itwould
a yearago.
18

EUR/USD
The dovesagainstthe hawks
The othernoteworthy consideration isthe stance ofthe European CentralBank
(ECB) over the coming weeks. Given their prior intentions to terminate the
quantitative easing,most analysts and traders do not expect any deviation in
termsofthe ECB’sprevailing monetarypolicy.Thisisfurthersupported byGermany’s2018
1stquarterinflation data which showed a modestYoY increase to
1.2% .Forreference,core inflation wasstuck around 1% formostoflastyear.
As inflation has remained wellbelow the ECB’s inflation targetofaround 2% ,
the ECB does not need to tighten its accommodative monetary policy and the
wind up ofthe QE isexpected to carryon asperschedule tillSeptember.Moreover,Mario
Draghi,PresidentoftheECB,recentlysaid thattheoutlookon inflation
rising was positive butthatthere were uncertainties which “warrantpatience,persistence
and prudence”.Hence,rate hikes are also unlikely before
the end of2018.
On theothersideofthepond,thesituation isquitetheopposite.W ith inflation
picking up in thefirstthreemonthsand exceeding 2% YoY (Figure3),thepotentialforgreaterincreasesseem
likely.
Aided by increasing wages, oil
and metalpricesand the threat
of war (trade or otherwise) is
fuelling the inflationary drive.
W hile the current levels of inflation
are anticipated,the Fed
is displaying a hawkish stance
inin orderto notbe taken bysurprise.
Figure 3:ConsumerPrice IndexforAllItemsexceptFood and Energy
(Source:United StatesBureau ofLaborStatistics)
Given the prevailing effect of the wage-price spiral,the Fed is expected to
push up rates.W e feel,based on these trendsand priorplansbythe Fed,that
there willbe intermittentrate increases tillthe end of2019,taking the Fed
fundsrate to between 3% and 3.5% .

EUR/USD
The dovesagainstthe hawks
Meanwhile,the US 10 YearBond Yield isinching closerto 3% ,at2.994% ,and
further widening its differentialwith the German 10 Year Bund. Additionally,
unlike the ECB,the Fed isactually trying to carry outbalance sheetreductions
in orderto normalisetheirmonetarypolicy.W ith thesefactors,coupled obviously
with the rate hikes and the potential of American tariffs, the USD seems
primed to regain some ofthe ground itlostto the EUR lastyear.A possible risk
to bearin mind isthattheEU willcatch up in termsofinflation and then thesituation
willhave to be reassessed.However,we feelthatsuch an eventwillonly
takeplaceoncetheECB’sQEmeasuresstop forgood and thatgivesusalow-risk
runwayofatleast6 months.
In terms oftechnicalanalysis,we can see thatthe EURUSD is trading sideways
between a supportof1.22331 and a resistance of1.24593 (Figure 4).
Figure 4:DailyChartofEUR/USD from mid-November2017 to May2018
As the analysis here is mainly fundamental,the position recommended is long
term as well.As can be seen by the blue line atthe price levelof1.21811 in
Figure 4,it seems to have been a support levelbefore when the USD tried to
breakoutin lateFebruaryand even beforethatwhen theEURUSD started trading
in itscurrentrange.
Hence,it is recommended a SELL on the EURUSD at 1.21545 (which was a low
reached on 1stMarch)with astop lossat1.22318 in caseofafalsebreakout(the
previoussupportlevel)and atakeprofitof1.20001 (theopening pricefor2018;
likelya psychologicalbarrier).The intended trade horizon forthisrecommendation
is6 months,untilthe ECB windsup itsQE program.
20

TheNUSInvestmentBanking Conference(NIBC)2017 wasagreatopportunityfor
many,to interact and connect with the various institutionalleaders and learn
moreaboutInvestmentBanking.Itwascertainlyan eyeopener,with apaneldiscussion
thatfocused on topicssuch ascryptocurrencies,thefutureofInvestment
Banking and regulators, as well as the rise of technology. In particular, the
debate on cryptocurrenciessparked the curiosityofthe engaged audience,asit
enabled the contribution of various opinions from both the students and the
panellists.
One key takeaway from the debate would be that it strengthened the belief,
among a few keen listeners,that there is a cryptocurrency bubble.Yet,there
seemsto be a chance thatitissustainable,should itgain mainstream approval
and becomes more relevant in our everyday lives.W hile cryptocurrencies may
seem like safe haven assetswith itsmeteoric raise overthe pastyear,itisrecognised
thatspeculators would stillhave to exercise extreme caution and due
diligence before deciding whetherornotto investin them.
Moreover,the discussion on the future ofInvestmentalso gave rise to the perspective
thattechnology can be an opportunity,asopposed to only functioning
asa threat.Thisserved asa reminderto many,to be well-informed on newsupdateswith
rising trends– to ride the wave ofdisruption,and notbe leftin its
wake.
Apartfrom Technicalknowledge,thenetworking eventalso created amemorable
session for the attendees.This involved an intimate rooftop session with the
eventpartners(DBS,Bloomberg,Barclays,J.P.Morgan and Societe Generale).
“N IB C hasprovidedmewhtremendous
value,both expliclyin termsoftechnical
knowledge and implicly, in giving me a
renewed drivetoworktowardsmygoal.I
can’twaforthenextN IB C!”
— KennyWong,Year1 BusinessStudent

The yearhad started on a good note,bringing in severalfirstsforthe department– with
the society's first ever FundamentalAnalysis 101 (FA101)course.This catered to a large
crowd ofover100 attendees,comprising ofboth studentsand membersofthepublic.Given
thatthiswasthe firstofitskind,the work in designing the curriculum and preparation of
course materials,involving the search forreal-life examples,wascertainlyno simple task.
The main challenge lay in striking a balance between catering to both the largely uninformed,aswellasthe
novice investor– who had alreadyacquired basicknowledge,priorto
the session.The eventualcompromise wasthen to design a pioneerinitiative thatwould include
sharing ofthe mostbasic principles ofinvesting,togetherwith some practicaland
technicalknow-how.Thisproved to be an effective choice,asthe workshop laterreceived
verypositive feedback from the attendees.
Following the society'skick-offevent,the leadership committee also saw increased receptivity
towards its initiatives,such as in recruitment,which took place severalweeks after
FA101.The Equity Research Departmentwas able to form a capable team of25 members,
carefullyselected from the overwhelming numberofapplicants.Departmentjuniorsand seniors
are from severaldisciplines.W ith such diversity,the society had gone on to create
more firsts,such asitsinitiative to include coverage on new age sectors,and laterformed
teams to coverindustries such as renewable energy as wellas focused consumercoverage
on the e-commerce area and TMT coverage on the tech sector.
Moving forward,itcan be assured thatthe legacy ofrunning an effective FA101 workshop
can be passed on to the leadersstepping up from theircurrentrolesasexecutive members
in theEquityResearch department–astheanalystshavedemonstrated good knowledgeand
skillsetsacquired.Afterseveralsessionsoftraining and handson practiceon valuation and
fundamentalanalysis, the analysts had proceeded to produce calls that have beaten the
MSCIW orld Indexby0.57% on a yearto date basis.Notonlydoesthisenhance theircredibilityasanalystsofNUS
InvestmentSociety,butalso laysimportantgroundwork forthe society'sgoalofsetting
up a live fund.

Foreign Exchange
GM FX101 hasbeen a yearlyinitiative bythe GlobalMacro (GM)Research Departmentsince
the year2014. The organising departmentanalysesmacroeconomic eventsand focusesits
research on productssuch asstock indexes,fixed income,currenciesand commodities.Like
minded individualsin thisdepartmenthave come together,with a similarsentimentin how
learning to trade currenciesisthe bestwayto gain exposure to analysing investmentsfrom
a macro perspective.
The aim ofthe eventisto introduce the basicsofForeign Exchange (FX)trading and investments
to allNUS students and even the generalpublic who might be interested. It is a
day-long educationalcourse teaching beginnershow to trade the currency market.The directorsofthe
departmentpersonallyintroduced the fundamentalsofFX trading and subsequentlydeep
dived into thedetailsofusing technicaland macroeconomicanalysisto identifyhigh
probabilityset-upsto make potentiallyprofitable trades.Much emphasiswasplaced
on the benefitsofFX trading to help spark the interestofstudentswho mightpotentially
becomemembersoftheNUSInvestmentSociety.Slidedeckswereprepared forallattendees,
such thattheycould follow thepresentation with ease,whilethetimelybreaksbetween presentersallowed
forgood opportunityto clarifyanydoubts.
After the buffet lunch, that was catered for allattendees, guest speaker Ang Kar Yong
shared more aboutthe topicof“Trading Strategiesand MoneyManagement” to supplement
the knowledge gained in the firsthalfofthe course.KarYong is a notable NUS Business
Schoolalumnuswho wasonce featured in ChannelNewsAsia’sMoneyMind Young Investor.
He wasalso showcased asa SocialGuru.In thisfeature,he had led the path formore than
a thousand tradersin confusing marketconditionsbysharing histrading strategiesthrough
forumsand blog posts.Heiscurrentlyafull-timetraderand runshisown FX trading school,
AlphaPlay.Itwasdefinitelya treatforthe attendees,asaccessto histrading course retails
atapproximately S$1,000 – yethe had kindly shared hisknowledge and answered allquestionsposed.Hisexperience
ofteaching trading strategieswason fulldisplayashe demonstrated
unique methodsto share hisinsightsand perspectiveswith the crowd,whilstfully
engaging them.
Finally,FX101 ended with an insightfulcareersharing session by MrSiow W ei,a currency
traderwith ESW ManagePteLtd who started histrading careerwith BankofAmericaMerrill
Lynch.He openly shared abouthis failures and gave concrete advice on the recommended
stepsto be taken to break into the trading field.MrSiow W eitook the audience through a
typicaldayin hisworking lifeand balanced outtheprosand consofhischosen careerpath.
Finally,he opened the floorand kindly answered the many questionsthatintereststudents
have been wanted to know aboutan elusive careerin trading.
26

QF101 isa new initiative pioneered thisyear,in 2018,bythe Quantitative Research DepartmentofNUS
InvestmentSociety.Itreceived an overwhelming and heart-warming response
from the60 keen individualsthatattended thefullcourse,on theSaturdaymorning of24th
February.
Aimed atsharing knowledge on the application ofquantitative methodsin the financialindustry,
QF101 deep dived into useful applications in Visual Basic Application for Excel
(VBA),including algorithm trading workflow in python,risk management,aswellasan introduction
to machine learning.In reviewing the session,participantshave rated the course
positively in terms of relevancy and are also keen on pursuing topics that prospectively
began to seem significantin enhancing theirlearning,aftergoing through thematerialproduced
bythe analysts.
The session started on the topicof‘PowerfulVBA’,in which the Quantitative Research Analystscovered
some basicsyntaxofVBA,and the applicationsofit– to which the attendants
were able to reflectand sound outhow itcould be usefulfortheirown use.
On thetopicofalgorithm trading workflow in python,thekeyfocuswason building theexecution
system,after having established the trading strategy,without going in too deep
with the use ofPython.
Risk management,anothertopic covered,involved the introduction ofseveralmethods in
measuring risk,from value-at-risk and greeks,to categorisation ofrisk into marketrisk,as
wellascreditrisk.
Thelasttopicinvolved an introduction to machinelearning,during which theanalystsintroduced
awiderangeofalgorithmsin solving regression orclassification problem,along with
more advanced methodssuch asboosting and bagging,ensemble method,and even touched
on neuralnetwork models.
In concluding thisyear’sseriesofintroductory workshopsforyoung investors,the society
isveryproud to have metresounding successin once again drawing in studentinterest,engagement,
and even saw familiar faces at the society’s various introductory workshops
which indicated recurring interest in the society’s initiatives.QF101 is likely to stay and
continue NUS InvestmentSociety’s legacy ofpioneering new events thataddress trending
topicsthatpique studentinterest.

NUS Investment Society's 'Thursday W orkshops'
is a humble initiative organised by
thesociety,to educateboth NUSundergraduates
and the wider public on several
topics. The range of topics include stock
valuations,technicalIndicators,as wellas
Quantitative Strategies. Conducted at a
moderate pace, spanning over the two semesters
ofthe academic year,the teaching
sessions are targeted at amateur investors
hoping to improve theirfinancialliteracy.
The iconicweeklysessionsare in factrolled
outcontinuously every year,as partofthe
society's manifesto to empower keen individuals
with better investment knowledge
and insight. Conducted and facilitated by
all analysts from the three research divisionsnamely,EquityResearch,GlobalMacro
aswellasQuantitative Finance,the society
membersare given the opportunityto share
personal experiences with the students,
whilst building up their confidence when
speaking in frontofa crowd.
Saturday W orkshops serve the function of
equipping analystswith fundamentalinvestmentskillsand
giving them networking opportunities
with various guests.These sessions
are typically kicked off with internal
meetingswithin the research departments–
Equity Research,GlobalMacro,and Quanti
tative Finance – consisting ofpresentations
on trade ideas and debates on issues from
selected industries.
Following the internal discussions, the
entire research department is then regrouped
and seated in a combined seminar
style arrangement,where analystsare given
greater exposure on topics raised from the
respectivedepartments.Oneexampleofthis
would be in how the Global Macro and
Quantitative Finance departments would be
learning about equity valuations. This
would give them the breadth ofunderstanding
in the variousfinancialaspectsorfunctionsofa
bank’sbusiness.
Lastly,Saturday workshops conclude with a
guestspeaker. Theseincludespeakersfrom
variousprestigiousbanksand assetmanagement
firms and would provide the analysts
with valuableinsightson thechallengesand
opportunities from within the industry.
Overall,through theresearch reports,workshops
and networking events, the analysts
willbe betterprepared with necessaryskills
and knowledge to go forth and excelin the
fieldsoffinance theychoose to pursue.
28

On the19th ofApril,theNUSInvestmentSocietyhad cometogetherto bid farewellto
the15th ExecutiveCommitteeand formallyend theacademicyearofFY17/18.
The event,organized by the Human Resource (HR)department,kicked off with a quick
rundown oftheactivitiesthatthesocietyhad organized and taken partin,throughout
the year.Eventssuch asthe NUS-SGX Stockpitch Challenge and the FOREX 101 course
conducted bytheGlobalMacro Department(GM)werecornerstonesofNUSInvestment
Society’sjourney.
MembersoftheExecutiveCommitteealsoeach tookturnstoexpresstheirappreciation
towardstheirteams,thanking them fortheirco-operation.In a good effortto lighten
the mood from the stressofthe nalsexamination,which ran concurrentto the society’sfarewell,theHR
departmenthad also planned bonding gamesforthemembers.It
wasalso analchanceforthedepartmentsto exemplifyteam spirit,in which thewinning
teamswould beawarded prizes.
Thegettogetherended on amemorablenote,with membersengaged in candid conversationsoverthedinnerprovided,lled
with laughterfrom thefunnysightsofmembers
lling theircheekswith marshmallows,in avalianteffortto win oneofthegames.

30

Proudlybroughttoyouby:

CREDITS
Specialthankstoourcontributors
ArkaRay(GlobalMacroResearchAnalyst)
DevinNathanael(GlobalMacroDirector)
DonovanChua(GlobalMacroResearchAnalyst)
HengKaiRong(ProjectManagementDirector)
KaranHareshMirpuri(HumanResourceExecutive)
KennyWong(MarcommsExecutive)
LeeJiaEn(HumanResourceDirector)
NicholasChongMingHui(EquityResearchAnalyst)
NicholasTanWeiHong(President)
PhuaRyan(VicePresident,Research)
PohTzeWeeDaryl(EquityResearchDirector)
SagarNileshShah(GlobalMacroDirector)
SongJiaxin(EquityResearchAnalyst)
TanMuEnEunice(MarcommsExecutive)
WangZexin(QuantitativeFinanceDirector)
WongSongKaiGideon(GlobalMacroDirector)

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