Securities Trading Floor launched at Cardiff University

Students from Cardiff University are being given an additional skill within their education with the introduction of a new Trading Room within the Cardiff Business School.

The project funded by the Welsh Assembly Government is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment as used in the live Stock Exchange, providing the Cardiff based students’ hands on experience in buying, selling and trading shares; with the aim to train future leaders within this area of financial services.

During a 45 minute sessions, students are grouped into buyers, sellers and traders, working for ‘price discovery’ – finding out the value the markets puts on certain shares. Similar to the real Stock Exchange, deals made by one trader has an impact on the value of the shares for others.

As students come close to finding the true price of shares, the teacher can flash up a fundamental change which disrupts the market – the resignation of a politician or a rumour about a company’s financial health.

Professor Kent Matthews explains: "It's realism. There's a theoretical world they learn about in their class, but they apply it here and the real world is not as easy as the theories - it has a lot of "noise", news which can affect the markets.”
The students are also able to take Thomson Reuters Markets Academy examinations; an industry recognised achievement of their abilities of applying their skills.

Funding from the Assembly Government will provide data and market information feeds from Bloomberg and Thomson-Reuters which are fundamental to the operation.

First Minister, Rhodri Morgan said the new facility would help deliver exceptional finance education and provide students with the skills and practical hands-on experience sought by business.
“We know the current economic climate is affecting many sectors of business and industry but financial services remain a key economic sector for Wales employing around 30,000 people.
“To grow and develop this sector in the future we need to be more innovative and more entrepreneurial than the competition which is why I welcome this collaborative and innovative working between government and higher education to meet the future needs of business.”
He added that supporting a facility like the Trading Room was an investment in the skills base of tomorrow’s students which would in turn make Wales an attractive proposition for investment projects in the financial services sector.