Students of IE Business School’s Master in Finance program win 2nd prize in the online business game

The “Vita” team, made up of students from the Universities of Peking and Chicago, emerged as overall winners in the final round of this international competition in which some 21,200 young people from countries worldwide took part.

The final of Ace Manager brought together five teams which had come out on top in the first phase, held between April 17 and May 7. In the initial phase of the competition teams of three students were asked to test their ability to perform a series of banking-related jobs based on a number of financial case studies linked to the BNP Paribas Group’s three core business areas: Retail Banking, Asset Management and Corporate and Investment Banking. The teams were set the task of finding the best solution to assist clients looking to develop their business.

The finals took place simultaneously at BNP Paribas offices in Shanghai, Beijing and Madrid. Ramiro Mato, Country Manager for Spain and Laurent Couraudon, Manager for China, were in attendance to congratulate the top teams for reaching the finals of this international competition. The top three teams received €6,000 plus a trip to Paris, €3,000, and €1,500 respectively. Additionally, all final contestants received tickets for tennis tournaments.

The final consisted of two parts. During the first part of the day participants worked on a finance-related case study connected to the three core business areas of BNP Paribas. In the afternoon, they were asked to reinvent relations with the client and to imagine innovative products and services. At the end of the day, all five finalist teams were asked to complete a final task before a judges panel comprised of experts from the BNP Paribas group.

Ramiro Mato explained the BNP Paribas group were extremely happy to take part in an initiative that helped with the training and education of young people. “We are delighted that a team made up of students from Spain’s IE Business School was found to be among the best teams in the competition.”

Ignacio de la Torre, Director of Masters in Finance Programs at IE Business School explained that a quality education in the field of finance provides an excellent base for success. “Our Master in Finance is ranked No. 3 worldwide by Financial Times. Recognition of our students in prestigious competitions like the ACE Manager run by PNB Paribas provides enormous encouragement to keep offering quality programs that meet the demands of the business community.”