Warwick Academy has won the KPMG Senior School Investment Challenge after Flirtingwithmodels, one of the school’s three teams in the competition, finished with an imaginary portfolio of stocks worth $123,290.67.

All 20 senior school teams who took part in this year's competition, now in its 16th year, started with a virtual $100,000. The aim was to see who could invest and grow their portfolio the most during a six-month period.

The top three teams, providing they are all from different schools, win cash prizes for their school, to be used for educational initiatives. The Flirtingwithmodels team secured the top award for $10,000 for Warwick Academy.

Another Warwick Academy team, WA LITquidity, was second with a portfolio of $115,969.37, just edging ahead of Chatmore British International School’s TC-1, on $115,947.38.

However, as each school can only win one of the top prizes, the runner-up award of $6,000 went to Chatmore.

The third place prize of $4,000 went to Bermuda Institute, after its team Stock-up finished fourth with a portfolio valued at $115,170.33.

Only three of the 20 young investment teams lost money on their portfolio.

At a prize-giving event yesterday, held virtually for a second consecutive year due to Covid-19 restrictions, Steve Woodward, managing director at KPMG in Bermuda, and chairman of its Lift Off programme, said all the island’s senior schools had participated.

He praised the teams for coming up with inventive names, and said there had been a shift towards biotech and pharmaceutical stock picks this year.

He told the students: “I hope you had some fun with the challenge, and that it has also encouraged you to think about a career in business or financial services. We do hope that you may be interested in joining KPMG in the near future once you leave school – we do have some great programmes.”

Sara Jackson, director of sixth form studies at winning school Warwick Academy, said students loved the competition and gained a lot from it.

Special guest Diallo Rabain, Minister of Education, said: “On behalf of the Ministry of Education we extend our heartfelt gratitude to KPMG for consistently investing in Bermuda’s students.”

He said the investment challenge was one of the best examples of how corporate and Government partnerships are essential in helping the country to grow.

He added: “For 16 years, KPMG has dedicated countless voluntary hours to mentor and develop our students and provide financial investment in both our students and schools, genuinely leading by example of investing for the future.

“When corporate companies like KPMG provide real world relevant and meaningful opportunities, it motivates our students. They can see the relevance of pursuing a career in a specific industry, which helps them to do their best in school.”

He said the investment challenge was an excellent opportunity for students to learn about accounting, financial analysis and how the stock market functions.