Where the year happens

Competitions, simulations, speaker evenings and socials, run by students for Bristol students. This year opened on 24 September with a full Pugsley Lecture Theatre.

Pugsley Lecture Theatre filled with students for the BTS Welcome Event
Welcome Event · 24.09.2026
Committee members presenting the divisions at the front of the lecture theatre
Members talking around a table at the social after the Welcome Event

Up next

  1. Analyst applications 60 places across FICC, Equities, Macro and Quant, reviewed on a rolling basis. Apply now
  2. UK Investment Competition starts With UMushroom. A £100,000 virtual portfolio, alone or in a team of up to three. Details
  3. Speaker evenings Traders, investors and Bristol alumni. Free for members.
  4. Bloomberg Terminal sessions Hands-on, open to all, no experience needed.

Dates for each evening go to the WhatsApp group first.

The UK Investment Competition 2026 presented on the lecture theatre screens at the Welcome Event
Presented at the Welcome Event.

UK Investment Competition 2026

With UMushroom

Seven weeks against students from universities across the UK. Run a £100,000 virtual portfolio on your own or in a team of up to three, scored equally on performance and on what you learn along the way. The top ten at each university go through to an elimination round, and the winners present their strategy to a jury of financial professionals at the Grand Final in London.

Starts
12 October 2026
Performance freeze
20 November 2026
Grand Final
1 December 2026, London
Entry
£12 per student
Team size
1 to 3
Prizes
Internships, coaching, vouchers

The Annual Trading Competition

A team presenting their Diageo equity pitch to judges in a University of Bristol lecture theatre

All 13 teams. One instrument each. External judges.

This year every analyst team competes: each runs a mock portfolio, pitches a single instrument and defends it under questioning from judges drawn from industry.

Last year’s seven-team edition was won by the US 10-year yield and Diageo teams, from a field spanning Brent crude, copper, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and European defence.

  • April – June
  • 13 teams
  • External judges
  • Pitch format
Team pitching the US 10-year yield at the annual trading competition
Winner US 10-year yield
Judges questioning the Diageo team after their pitch
Winner Diageo
Team pitching Brent crude at the annual trading competition
Brent crude
Team pitching copper at the annual trading competition
Copper
Team pitching Eli Lilly at the annual trading competition
Eli Lilly
Team pitching European defence at the annual trading competition
European defence

Competitions and simulations

With AmplifyME

AmplifyME Pathways launch

A live portfolio-management simulation. Members manage $20m of capital through a compressed year of market moves, news and research, and are ranked on what they do with it. Our first event sold out; a second followed by demand.

How the Pathways launch ran →

Members taking part in the annual BTS macro debate competition
Annual

Macro Debate Competition

A for-and-against debate on a live macro question, argued in front of the room. The 2025–26 motion asked whether Argentina should adopt a free-floating exchange rate — the “for” side took it.

Members using the Bloomberg Terminal at a give-it-a-go session
Open to all · no experience needed

Bloomberg Terminal Sessions

Hands-on give-it-a-go sessions on the Terminal. The fastest way to go from never having touched market data to pulling a curve yourself.

People actually doing the work

Traders, investors, founders and Bristol alumni a few years ahead of our members. Filter by where they sit in the market.

Shahryar Naghshbandi

Shahryar Naghshbandi

Head of Macro Trading, AME — Standard Chartered

An evening on how the trading industry actually works, and the advice he’d give anyone trying to enter it. The discussion ran well past the scheduled finish.

Rich McDonald

Rich McDonald

Hedge fund manager; ex-Director, Credit Suisse

Ran an interactive trading and options masterclass with our members, built around live trading games rather than slides.

Andrew Simpson

Andrew Simpson

Chief Executive, SIGMA Financial

Spoke to a full theatre on trading and on integrating sophisticated AI tooling into the space, as part of an ongoing partnership with SIGMA.

  • Pratik Popat

    Founder of BTS · Venture and growth investor, Simplyhealth; previously Barclays

  • Shahryar Naghshbandi

    Head of Macro Trading, AME — Standard Chartered

  • Andrew Simpson

    Chief Executive, SIGMA Financial

  • Nick Votier, CFA

    Vice President, Ares Wealth Management Solutions; nine years at HSBC

  • Eren Erman

    Global Head of Compliance Technology, TP ICAP

  • Rich McDonald

    Hedge fund manager; ex-Director, Credit Suisse

  • Sally Tam

    Investment Executive, LDC · on her route into private equity

  • Viktoria Leins

    Data Science IB Analyst, Citi · on breaking into investment banking

  • Simon Warren

    Retired Head of Global Investments; former Director, Society of Technical Analysts

  • Matt Cheung

    CEO and Founder, Work in Fintech

  • Chloe Hollobon

    Analyst, Work in Fintech

The year at a glance

September – December

January – March

  • Macro Debate Competition Spring
  • Division workshops Termly
  • Industry socials By invitation

April – June

  • Annual Trading Competition Flagship
  • Energy Trading Week Partner event
  • Division head applications August

Other events

  • BTS analysts and division heads at the DRW social

    DRW Social DRW

    An invite-only evening with DRW for our analysts and division heads.

  • BTS members attending Energy Trading Week

    Energy Trading Week Partner event

    Our commodities partner invites BTS members to their annual industry event, putting members in the room with practising energy traders.

  • BTS members representing the society at the LSE AIC

    LSE Alternative Investments Conference External

    BTS representing Bristol among the UK’s alternative investment societies.

  • BTS members at the Standard Chartered evening

    An evening with Standard Chartered Standard Chartered

    Our members after Shahryar’s session on the trading industry.

  • Andrew Simpson, CEO of SIGMA Financial, speaking to BTS members

    A full theatre for SIGMA SIGMA Financial

    Andrew Simpson on trading and AI tooling, part of an ongoing partnership.

  • Students filling Pugsley Lecture Theatre at the 2026 Welcome Event

    Annual Welcome Event Every September

    Where the year starts: the society, the divisions and the analyst programme, introduced to new members. This year it filled Pugsley Lecture Theatre.

  • Members at a BTS-hosted workshop

    Member Workshops Termly

    Practical sessions run by BTS, building the groundwork the divisions then apply to live markets.

Hear about the next one first

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