LBS students shine in global MBA student competitions

London Business School (LBS)’s Class of 2025 MBA students have enjoyed success in two student competitions open to MBA students worldwide recently: Rotterdam School of Management (RSM)'s Impact Investing Competition and UCLA’s Fink Credit Pitch Competition.

An LBS team of five saw off stiff competition from other top business schools to be crowned victors at the RSM competition. The winning team beat 12 other teams from nine top European business schools to be crowned the winners. There was also success in the UCLA Fink Credit Pitch Competition, which saw LBS come third.

Both competitions seek to showcase the brightest MBA minds, with RSM's Impact Investing Competition seeking to redefine the power of capital and the Fink Credit Pitch Competition inviting talented students to pitch their best credit investment ideas to a panel of distinguished judges.

LBS’ Impact Investing team comprised five first-year MBA students – Cesar Carranza, Midhat Fatima, Harsha Sankar, Dalia Serafy and Parm Sandhu – who presented a strong investment case for a floating solar farm project to a judging panel of engineers, consultants and investors. The investment opportunity was based on a real project by a leading Dutch green energy firm, GroenLeven, which was involved in the case creation.

The case was a hit with the judges who were particularly impressed with the team’s novel revolving credit line strategy, which was integral to generating the required rate of return for the investment. They were also impressed by the team’s deep understanding of the case and their adaptability in high-pressure situations. The team’s presentation skills, notably their ability to communicate confidently and concisely, and the clarity of their slides in emphasising key takeaways, were also commended.

Speaking about the significance of their win and her pride in the positive values the team demonstrated, Midhat said:

“As a Laidlaw Scholar at London Business School, I had the privilege of being part of a team that embodies the values of ambition and purpose-driven leadership that the Laidlaw Foundation espouses. Winning the Impact Investing Competition was not only a testament to our commitment to creating positive impact but also reflective of the excellence that is fostered by London Business School.”

The Fink Credit Pitch Competition saw Josefina Bohn, Ricardo Lewysohn Vera and Jag Singh pitch their idea about a Brazilian petrochemical company to judges from Ares, Blackrock, Pimco and other leading global investment management firms.

Speaking about their delight in doing so well in a competition which is normally dominated by US business school participants, Josefina, Ricardo and Jag said:

“The Fink Credit Pitch Competition is the premier Investment Management competition in the United States, which makes it all the more prestigious for us as we were the only team from a non-US business school participating. Past winners of the competition have been Chicago Booth, Columbia Business School and The Wharton School, so the calibre of participating schools and students is very high. We are delighted that we were able to fly to LA to take part. Edging out numerous high-profile US schools to finish third behind UNC Kenan-Flagler and Wharton definitely made the jetlag worthwhile.”