The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Green and Gold Fund, a student-led financial fund that has grown nearly $250,000 since inception, wins a third consecutive Redefining Investment Strategy Education (RISE) international championship in the Alternative category. They took home the title because they had the most superior risk-adjusted returns of any university in their category.
Elizabeth Case, a senior finance major and the fund’s Chief Investment Officer, took over the program earlier this semester. She says every student takes their position seriously and performs due diligence before presenting recommendations so it alleviates some of the pressure.
“There is a tremendous responsibility that goes with managing an investment fund worth more than half-a-million dollars,” said Case, a 22-year-old from Jacksonville, Ala. “Every decision is a group effort where we receive input from all fund members and address all of the major risks before voting to buy or sell. Any decision is based on a majority vote of our chief officers and portfolio managers.”
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The Green and Gold Fund, managed solely by UAB students, began with $340,000 in 2006 and stands at $578,000 as of March 2013. The program advisor is Lary Cowart, Ph.D., interim chair of the Department of Accounting and Finance.
At the RISE XIII forum they competed in the Alternative category which means their fund can sell covered call options and purchase commodity linked exchange-traded funds, better known as ETFs. RISE is the world’s largest and longest-running student investment forum attracting more than 120 universities from places such as Harvard, Stanford and Carnegie Mellon.
“To win a third straight national title in a competition of this stature affirms that the UAB School of Business is home to the finest students, faculty and education found anywhere in this country,” said Eric Jack, Ph.D., dean of the School of Business.