While most on these boards are not eligible, it should interest a few of you and perhaps some other might be interested in alerting their schools to the Olympiad. GREENWICH, Conn., Sept. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Interactive Brokers Group (IBG), a global leader in market-making and brokerage services, is launching the first IB College Trading Olympiad that will allow future leaders in technology to compete for industry recognition as well as $400,000 in prize money. IBG is sponsoring the Olympiad to highlight the growing need for computer science and engineering students in the financial industry. Students will compete by creating and implementing real-time program trading applications. Students whose trading technology generates the highest profits will earn: 1st place prize, 1 student, $50,000 2nd place prizes, 2 students, $25,000 each 3rd place prizes, 10 students, $5,000 each Placing prizes, 100 students, $1,000 each IBG will also match the 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes with a donation in the winner's name to the sponsoring college. "The IBG group has been a pioneer of electronic trading since its origin in 1977. The past three decades witnessed the great story of a small firm that has grown into a global brokerage services company which accesses over 50 markets around the world," said Interactive Brokers LLC Managing Director Steve Sanders while announcing the competition. "Along the road, there were many technology and regulatory hurdles we had to overcome as the IT trading revolution unfolded. But this is still an ongoing story. We want the new generation to be part of this development, as capital markets play a crucial role in fueling innovation and economic growth around the world," Sanders also said. Students in Canada, Mexico and the United States can enter the competition, provided they are graduate students majoring in computer science or engineering; other graduate students with an undergraduate degree in computer science or engineering; and undergraduate seniors majoring in computer science or engineering. Trades must be generated by computer algorithms and may involve any asset class -- equities, options, futures, warrants, bonds or foreign exchange -- directly accessible on Interactive Brokers LLC. Students will trade with $100,000 in phantom money, with the same Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation (TWS) Application Program Interface (API) that professional traders use to create automated trading solutions. Various programming languages are allowed, including Java, C++, C, and Visual Basic. All applications must be submitted by Saturday, Dec. 31, 2005, at 11:59 p.m. EST to qualify for the contest. The competition will be limited to 250 colleges and applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis. Trading will start on Monday, Jan. 23, 2006, at 12:01 a.m. EST and run for 10 weeks until Friday, March 31, 2006, at 11:59 p.m. EST. The trading rules can be found at http://www.interactivebrokers.com , in the University of IB section. Faculty advisors who will supervise the students can complete the application at http://www.interactivebrokers.com/IBTradingOlympiad . Questions can be e-mailed to IBtradingolympiad@interactivebrokers.com. IBG is the parent of market-making and specialist firm Timber Hill and agency broker Interactive Brokers LLC, which together handle approximately 19 percent of North American and about 16 percent of the world's listed options volume. IBG is the 16th largest U.S. broker-dealer group with about $2 billion in capital. Interactive Brokers LLC offers direct access to stocks, options, futures, warrants, bonds and foreign exchange on over 50 exchanges and marketplaces worldwide from a single Universal account. IB won the top ranking in Barron's annual survey of software-based online brokers.
Before anyone comes out and says what heroes they are at IB for having this contest, check this out. This is from the Trading Rules at IB: 2. Students are required to write a trading plan..... Trades may be based on any combination of technical or fundamental data and the plan should discuss these algorithms. Each studentâs plan should be about a page in length, and should discuss the market(s) traded, product(s) traded (i.e., stocks, options, Forex, etc.) and trading strategy employed. The advisor from each school must gather all student trading plans and submit them to Interactive Brokers no later than Saturday December 31, 2005 11:59 PM (Eastern Time). Any student, whose trades are not in conformity with their filed trading plan, as determined by Interactive Brokers in its sole discretion, will be disqualified..... 3. Each Student's plan must be his or her own work and not infringe upon or plagiarize the works or intellectual property rights of any third party. <B>Interactive Brokers will be given the right to use the Student's submission, including all intellectual property contained therein, for any and all purposes.</B> It almost looks like IB is looking for trading ideas for their own trading. Anyone with any kind of worthwhile plan will not enter this contest and reveal the strategy.
I think it's pure genius. IB will tell the winners they will bankroll their programs and work out a profit split. Also, IB gets the added bonus of all their commissions. Great idea guys.
that's not the aim nor goal of the challenge. I assume that clause was put in for judging, legal and other reasons (plagiarism and potential job offers comes to mind).
i know most students coming out of colloge, can't plan nothing, it's type of a professional publicity.
It seems to me that if any other broker posted such a contest with like Rules, they'd be laghed at and run right out of ET. Has anyone ever encountered a trading contest where the broker required the participants to reveal the strategy, and give up the intellectual rights to boot?