The South African Trader’s Trophy Competition, sponsored mainly by Nedbank Capital and the JSE, is aimed exclusively at university students and entails that students compete against each other or other market players in a fictitious market. They also compete against time and, for 60 minutes, are exposed to the conditions of a typical trading room, with all the concomitant noise and pressure. Students must adopt a position and quote prices to their clients in a real-life simulation. Students are scored on profitability, risk management, client service and market awareness.

To participate in the competition, students had to enrol and then participate in the qualifying rounds which took place at selected universities around the country. At the end of these rounds, the top 30 student traders took part in the national final held at the JSE.

Mokgethwa Tshwane and Melinda Jonker will travel to Amsterdam in March 2012 to compete against the winners from 15 other countries, in the Global Final of the Trader’s Trophy Worldwide. Although he is not in the economics field, Tshwane expressed his delight with this achievement which gave him an opportunity to experience what it is like to be a trader. “Although I had some disadvantages because of a lack of economics background, I am happy to have taken the second position in the country”, said Tshwane.

Charles Hayward, who declared to have a passion for national trade markets, also described the competition as a good learning process which one is seldom exposed to. “I have traded with my own money before – with small amounts and not on a large scale – and I have enjoyed it”.