CFA Society India co-hosted the 8th India Investment Conference on January 12 2018 in Mumbai, with CFA Institute, the global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for professional excellence.
The theme for this year's conference was 'Growth Conundrum, Opportunities, and Threats in 2018'.
This year's flagship CFA Society India and CFA Institute conference attracted nearly 500 investment management professionals who came together to improve their understanding of key issues that will drive investment decision making in the coming months.
"We have a robust capital market and Indian investors are ready to take advantage of it. Our aim with this conference is to help CFA charterholders and other investment management professionals to enhance their knowledge, and equip them with the right framework to serve India's investment needs," explains Jayesh Gandhi, CFA, president of CFA Society India (volunteer) and senior portfolio manager at Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd.
What industry says:
"Not just in India but also globally markets have done very well. Looking forward, it is going to be a stock picker's market which means that active managers who had a very tough time in the last couple of years; this is going to be the time for them to shine. The industry has to understand that investments is either high returns or low risks, you cannot have both. One has to understand quality investment to make money. If you don't understand, you are going to lose a lot of money," said Rupal Bhansali, Chief Investment Officer, International and Global Equities Portfolio Manager, Ariel Investments.
"Global economy is facing multiple challenges of which Donald Trump is major one. But he is helping dollar strengthening - that gives room to the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates and normalise monetary policy. On the other hand, we are seeing that the private sector in developed countries is not borrowing money even at low interest rates. Thus, it becomes difficult to predict negative interest rates in a capitalist system," said Richard Koo, Chief Economist, Nomura Research Institute.
"West can learn a lot from China. The USA has accumulated a USD 3.5 trillion deficit. China is significantly catching up and putting more protectionism. The Chinese system is working better for China than the American system for America. To make the China - American deal, China requires technological dominance and America needs to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership," said James McGregor, Chairman, Greater China APCO (Beijing) Consulting Company Limited.
"To maximise your success, you need to understand the adjectives that are related to success. The reality of how smart / hardworking you are perceived is something related to success. If you aim to maximise your career, you should strategise depending on your industry environment," said Carla Harris, Vice Chairman, Managing Director, Senior Client Advisor, Morgan Stanley.
"We have an amazing opportunity to connect with people in India without vested interests. These interests help in building the foundation of financial inclusion and literacy," said Paul Smith, CFA, President and CEO, CFA Institute.
"The better we predict, the better we can predict risks and uncertainty. The more we know, the more difficult it is to take decisive actions. We hence need to learn to not make the same mistakes," said Anil Gaba, Professor of Decision Sciences and the Orpar Chaired Professor of Risk Management; Academic Director, Centre for Decision Making and Risk Analysis, INSEAD.
The 8th India Investment Conference featured an enviable selection of international speakers who gave insights in their topics of expertise.
The conference began with an extremely insightful session on 'Non Consensus Investing' by Rupal Bhansali, Chief Investment Officer, International and Global Equities Portfolio Manager, Ariel Investments which was moderated by Sunil Singhania, CFA, Global Head, Equities, Reliance Capital Limited.
This was followed by an informative session by Richard Koo, Chief Economist, Nomura Research Institute on 'The Other-half of Macroeconomics and the Fate of Globalisation' moderated by Navneet Munot, CFA, Moderator, Chief Investment Officer, SBI Funds Management Private Limited. James McGregor, Chairman, Greater China, APCO (Beijing) Consulting Company Limited shared his valuable insights on China in his session titled 'Geopolitical Landscape in Asia as China Expands and America Retreats', which was moderated by Jayesh Gandhi, CFA, president of CFA Society India and Senior Portfolio Manager, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd.
The second half of the conference started with a lively session on 'Tools for Maximising Your Career Success' by Carla Harris, Vice Chairman, Managing Director, Senior Client Advisor, Morgan Stanley, moderated by Madhu Veeraraghavan, Director and T.A. Pai Chair Professor of Finance, T.A. Pai Management Institute (TAPMI).
Paul Smith, CFA, President and CEO, CFA Institute spoke on 'What Is Finance For?' and urged CFA charterholders and the investment management community to work for their investors and for the greater good of society.
Anil Gaba, Professor of Decision Sciences and the Orpar Chaired Professor of Risk Management; Academic Director, Centre for Decision Making and Risk Analysis, INSEAD held a session on 'Risk and Uncertainty: Illusion of Control and Its Impact on Judgments' which was moderated by Anil Ghelani, CFA, Senior Vice president, DSP BlackRock.
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