Kingussie High School scoops first place for female investment challenge
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Kingussie High School has scooped first place for two categories at this year’s nationwide Growing Future Assets Competition.
The students, aged between 14 and 18, came out top in the contest which aims to nurture future women in investment and encourage them to consider a career in the investment management industry. After going to head-to-head with 660 schoolgirls competing from 144 teams across Scotland, Kingussie High School, landed the top spot in both the Junior and Senior categories.
Helen Bradley, Future Asset chief executive, said: “This is an exceptional result for Kingussie High School. The fact that they have won both the junior and senior categories is outstanding. The judging panel were incredibly impressed with all of the entries but what really came across undeniably with both the teams from Kinguissie High School was their ability to understand the key elements in making an investment decision which is exactly what this competition is all about.”
The Senior Team, 16 -18 age group category (Gabi, Kirsty, Catrin, Zoe and Sasha) delivered a highly professional pitch on the sorting and recycling company TOMRA , whilst the Junior Team, 14-16 year category (Lucy, Tia and Jess) presented on renewable energy firm SolarEdge.
The girls delivered their pitches to separate panels of investment management professionals from Baillie Gifford, Walter Scott and Partners, RBC Brewin Dolphin, Rathbones, Martin Currie and BlackRock. Remarkably, both Kingussie teams came out on top, narrowly beating Alva Academy pitching John Deere in the senior finals and North Berwick High School pitching Planet Fitness in the juniors.
Lenka Nagle, faculty head of mathematics & numeracy and computing at Kingussie High School commented: “We’re absolutely thrilled that both our teams of girls won. It’s a huge achievement not only for the girls but also for us as a school and we are so proud of them! It has opened their eyes to a possibility of a career in the world of investment and we are so excited to support them all; with their onward growth and development.”
The competition is organised by Scottish financial educators Future Asset who believe that being female should never be a barrier to progressing in a chosen career and the contest introduces senior schoolgirls to potential careers in investment, demonstrating how working in the sector can change the world for the better and give young women valuable, transferable skills.
Georgiana Radulescu, vice president head of investor relations at TOMRA added: “We are very impressed with the work done by the team, congratulations! To address big challenges like resource scarcity and climate change, we need many ideas, perspectives, and diversity in both business and investing. It was great to see the girls’ take on our story, we are happy to have been chosen, and thank you for inspiring us back.”
