Q&A with Hari Vamso Patel from Team Alpha

Hari Vamso Patel is a first year economics student at Warwick University and part of TeamAlpha, which won the investment challenge.

What tactics did you take in the trading game?

Because it was only a month-long challenge, we knew there was no point in taking a long-term approach to investing. This meant we looked at how we could produce the best returns by capitalising on short-term fluctuations. Thoroughly researching news sources and economic data was key, and trying to take advantage of impending M&A activity. We made gains on the Cadbury-Kraft deal, for example.

Personally, I've had a lot of experience in trading - my mum set up an account for me under her name when I was 13, and the first thing I did when I turned 18 was create my own trading account. I've had experience trading via spread-betting in oil as well as contracts for difference. I was able to draw on that, but the whole team was very opinionated about hot sectors and deals, and we looked to invest as a group.

So, your finance based case study was good enough to make the final, and you eventually presented to Bank of America Merrill Lynch after a week's insight into the firm. Why do you think your team's effort won?

We were asked to create a commodities index targeted at institutional investors. As I mentioned, I'd had a little experience in the commodities sector, which gave me some technical insights I could utilise. The whole team learnt a lot during the insight week, and we drew on that knowledge during our own time to go that extra mile in creating a first class product.

Also, we really put in the time - some of us only had a couple of hours sleep some nights - and this really paid off. In the end, we submitted the index and an 8-page research document, which was way in excess of what was required.

Has that put you off investment banking?

The long hours? Not at all - it sets a benchmark of the sort of work ethic required to succeed in investment banking. It was also interesting to gain an insight into the culture of an investment bank, and by meeting a lot of people within different divisions, it definitely enhanced our technical skills.

So, what's the plan now?

I always knew I wanted to get into a trading position, but the attention and detail we paid to the commodities market has inspired me to focus on this asset class. Obviously, I've still got a couple of years left at university, so I'm aiming to gain a summer internship next year and hopefully get a better insight into technical aspects of trading. I'm also in the process of setting up a sales and trading society at university, which will be another opportunity to develop my skills.