CGS International Securities Pte Ltd (CGS International) concluded the third successful instalment of its annual ASEAN Investment Challenge (AIC) 2025 in Kuala Lumpur at the Securities Commission Malaysia’s ASEAN Capital Markets Forum 2025. This round, AIC marked a new milestone with Philippines joining for the first time, alongside teams from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand. The regional teams competed since April this year to secure the top spot and present the winning investment portfolio.
The AIC 2025 finale saw five national teams compete for the regional title before a panel of judges representing NASDAQ, Singapore Exchange, Bursa Malaysia, Indonesia Stock Exchange, the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the Philippines Stock Exchange, Securities Commission Malaysia and CGS International.
In line with the growing emphasis on responsible investments, participants were also required to invest a portion of their portfolios in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) aligned stocks, applying sustainability principles as part of their investment decision making process. After a rigorous assessment, the champions Team Rever of Malaysia walked away with a grand prize of over SGD 22,000 to kickstart their real financial and investment journey. The finalists also had the honour of joining Yang Berhormat (YB) Senator Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan, Finance Minister 2 of Malaysia, in a group photo, recognising their achievements as emerging leaders in financial literacy and responsible investing.
The final placings for AIC 2025 are as follows:
- Malaysia: Team Rever, International Islamic University Malaysia
- Philippines: Team ABM Quant, Polytechnic University of the Philippines
- Thailand: Team ICU Associates, Mahidol University International College
- Singapore: Team Retirement by 30, Ngee Ann Polytechnic
- Indonesia: Team Liquid, Petra Christian University
This year’s challenge provided participants with deep insights into capital market investing, featuring masterclasses and mentorship sessions by industry experts from CGS International and regional stock exchanges. Participants also gained access to CGS Academy, an e-learning platform designed to deliver a holistic understanding of financial literacy, technical analysis, and sustainable finance. In addition, each team was given the opportunity to practise their skills through a demo trading account, enabling them to develop practical investment strategies and apply risk management principles in a real-world setting.
Carol Fong, Group CEO of CGS International, said: “AIC 2025 is incredibly exciting with the participation of the Philippines, expanding our reach from four to five ASEAN countries and welcoming many first-time participants into this regional platform for financial learning and collaboration. It is especially encouraging to see how the teams have developed and progressed over the years. Teams are applying increasingly sophisticated strategies in their portfolio management, including sustainability-focused approaches.”
“More encouraging is the continuity within the AIC ecosystem. Past participants have returned as mentors, sharing their knowledge and experience with new cohorts. As the region’s leading integrated financial services provider, CGS International is proud to play a key role in forging strong cross-border partnerships. The continued show of support by the various ecosystem players, including the Securities Commission Malaysia, respective national stock exchanges, our trainers, and industry experts actively guiding and mentoring the participants. We envision a future where this kind of regional collaboration becomes a real world norm, as both investors and businesses benefit from seamless capital flows and access to various markets.”
“Going forward, we remain committed to advancing financial and investment literacy levels in the region through a variety of platforms. AIC has a specific focus on empowering youths with essential investment skills, but our efforts extend beyond. For instance, we introduced fractional share trading on Bursa Malaysia, a first in Malaysia, to significantly lower the barrier to entry for new or aspiring investors to invest in the shares of Malaysia’s top companies through our digital trading platform, UP, that includes bite-sized investment education and guidance for investors. Together, finance and capital market players can drive greater financial inclusivity, and empowering people from all demographics to build wealth through trusted and regulated platforms and tools,” she added.
Kevin Lee, Group Head of Sustainability of CGS International, said “We would like to congratulate all the participants for their hard work and dedication throughout these 7 months of training and activities for AIC 2025, and especially so for the well deserving winners, Team Rever from Malaysia, Team Liquid from Indonesia, Team Retirement by 30 from Singapore, Team ICU Associates from Thailand and Team ABM Quants from Philippines. Over the years, we have seen how the programme has impacted students from diverse backgrounds by granting students real-world exposure to the capital markets and providing structured and immersive environments for them to learn active trading. Many of the participants have been inspired by their experience and subsequently explored career pathways in finance and the capital market upon graduation.
For example, the AIC winner from 2023, is now a Management Associate with CGS International Securities Malaysia (CGS MY), while last year’s winner is currently interning with CGS MY. This positive trend is encouraging to us, and we are eager to see the next generation of youth bring their unique perspectives and energy to the table. With the rise of AI tools and rapid digitalisation, the future of finance will be exciting. CGS International hopes to continue nurturing credible and confident practitioners to drive innovation, uphold integrity, and champion sustainable investing as a way forward in building a robust capital markets.”
Muhammad Eyzzul Helmi Bin Zul Ramli and Nik Atikah Hani Binti Nik Mohd Zaid from the winning Malaysian team, said “We are honoured to be the third consecutive Malaysian winners for the ASEAN Investment Challenge. This experience has shown us how financial literacy can be a life-changing skill for us as individuals and in communities. AIC has given us the chance to learn from industry experts, work with peers across ASEAN, and apply real investment strategies in a practical and hands-on way. It was both challenging and rewarding to integrate sustainability and responsible investing principles into our portfolio strategy. We are grateful to CGS International for creating a platform that empowers students like us to turn our passion for finance into useful lessons for lifelong wealth building.”
Since its inception in 2023, the AIC has been a cornerstone initiative by CGS International to nurture financial literacy, promote sustainable investment practices, and build confidence among young investors across the region. The programme has grown in scale and impact, engaging over 15,000 from 500 institutions of higher learning across the five participating ASEAN nations since 2023, and is the only investment competition backed by all five of the participating countries’ stock exchanges and Securities Commission Malaysia.
Source: CGS International Securities (Press Release)