New Vehicle for Learning Emerging Markets

Hands-on experience managing live money in emerging markets: How's that for a resume builder? Starting this fall, finance-minded MBA students will have a chance to do just that, by enrolling in a class in which—with faculty oversight—they share the responsibility of managing the school's newly created Emerging Markets Equity Portfolio (EMEP). Though elements are modeled after the successful portfolios managed by the student-run University of Oregon Investment Group, the new fund offers additional layers of complexity. "Analyzing an EMEP company goes beyond financial statements and industry growth," said MBA candidate Tareq AlMusharaf, one of the four MBAs affiliated with the Finance and Securities Analysis Center (FSAC) who generated the portfolio's investment model this year. "The person involved must understand the country, its driving forces, cultural preferences and values," he added. With an expected launch date of fall 2011, the EMEP is aiming for target funding of $1 million. (Interested in contributing to this innovative project? Download the EMEP brochure to find out more.) Watch a video about the leading edge tools FSAC students use in their research.