• Your team will begin with RM100,000 in virtual cash to invest in your portfolio.

  • All trading takes place on Bursa InvestLab. Bursa InvestLab is a web-based stock market simulation that allows students to apply the concepts of investments and portfolio management in a hands-on learning environment, while working with real-world data without risking real money.

  • Each team shares one account on Bursa InvestLab. All team members will use the same username and password to access Bursa InvestLab. (If each student has an account, you are in violation of the competition rules.) You are advised to write down the username and password somewhere and share between team members.

  • Once the competition trading period is active, beginning 15 June 2026, teams can buy or sell shares at any time during the competition. The trading period ends on 10 August 2026.

  • All teams must fully execute one trade on InvestLab by 10 August 2026 in order to be eligible to advance to the final round.

  • InvestLab is active during the hours of the Malaysian stock market on weekdays from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (GMT+8). 

  • InvestLab executes all trades at real time prices (the actual price of the stock at that moment in time).

  • Teams can make up to 10000 trades during the course of the competition. (Clarification: Each buy or sell order counts as one trade.)

  • Teams are required to write trading notes for each transaction. It is a brief explanation on why you are buying or selling the asset. You don’t need to make it long.

  • Teams are given freedom to choose whether or not to invest in Shariah Compliance Assets. However, if you wish to invest only in Shariah Compliance assets, please do turn on Shariah Mode to filter out non-Shariah Compliance Assets. 

  • Please take note that a green logo besides the asset names indicates Shariah compliance assets.

  • We want to stress that diversification is a foundational principle in investment strategy, aimed at reducing risk and enhancing long-term returns. While simply spreading assets across a number of investments is a start, true diversification goes deeper—across sectors, industries and market capitalizations.

  • True diversification is more than just owning many stocks—it’s about owning the right mix of assets across various dimensions. By diversifying across sectors, industries, and companies, investors build resilience into their portfolios, reduce downside risk, and enhance long-term return potential.

  • No exploitation of game glitches; There is a glitch where you can create a huge amount of money by purchasing a high amount of penny stocks (e.g. RM0.05/stock) and selling it with higher prices (e.g. RM0.10/stock). This glitch wouldn’t happen in real life as someone has to be selling it, and there is a threshold on how much you can buy and a major purchase would move the market massively. Exploiting this would result in an IMMEDIATE ban.

  • Only the following investments are permitted:

  1. Stocks

  2. ETFs

-All ETFs are permitted except
the Shariah Gold Tracker ETF.

  1. Bonds

  • Failure to comply with the trading rules (exploiting glitches, buying Shariah Gold Tracker) will result in team removal.

TRADING RULES:

General Rules

1. Student Eligibility

Students must be qualified to join either of these categories:

‍ ‍1. Secondary School

Students must be between Form 3 and Form 5 or age 15-17 this year in order to join. Student teams must be comprised of members from the same secondary school and are all studying there. If the high school has various branches, teams must be comprised of students and an advisor from the same branch. Participants must not have earned a secondary school certificate (e.g. SPM and O-Level) before the competition begins on 15 June 2026. 

Additionally, participants in this category are required to have a teacher advisor as well. See here for more details.

Home-schooled students or privately tutored students may also compete. However, they are not allowed to team up with students from secondary schools.

2. Pre-university students & SPM Leavers

Participants in this category must be between age 17-19 this year to qualify. This category is open to anyone from any institution that has completed their secondary school before competition begins on 15 June, 2026. It is compulsory for all team members to be from the same institution. Lastly, they are not required to have a teacher advisor in their team.

2. Teams

Each team must maintain a minimum of 3 team members and a maximum of 4 members (including the student team leader) from the very start of the competition.

Each team SHARES one InvestLab Account.

Each team must have one designated student team leader.Teams will not be able to change their team leader once they register. If the team leader needs to be changed after registering due to extenuating circumstances, a written request must be submitted to support@nyic.my and approved by the Investment Competition team.

In addition, a written request must also be submitted to support@nyic.my and approved to change or drop a team member after registration. Teams that drop team members without first submitting a written request will be eliminated from the competition. Please note you will not be permitted to change or drop members after 1 June.

Team leaders are responsible for the following:

  • Leading your teammates to success. Each team will select one student to serve as their team leader and represent their team in communications with the NYIC committee. Teams may also assign additional duties to the team leader (such as coordinating meeting times) however they wish. 

  • Submitting their team’s final report after the trading period.

  • Fulfilling all the responsibilities of a regular team member, as listed below. 

Team members are responsible for the following:

  • Developing your team’s investment strategy for the client in mind. Be creative with it, as it can guide your team to victory. 

  • Conducting deep analysis of sectors, industries, stocks and bonds. 

  • Learning new investing concepts from the course [link] and also recommended to learn from other sources.

  • Placing trades on InvestLab. Team members must work together and place trades as a team through one shared account. Excellent communication and collaboration is important to success in the competition. 

  • Keeping up and meeting the final report deadline. Registered student teams are expected to be active throughout the competition, understand the rules, and work consistently during the 8 weeks of trading and strategy development. Manage your time wisely. 

Students are not permitted to participate on more than one team. 

Teams will select an official team name when they register for the competition and must create an InvestLab account with the same name. Teams should choose their own names, and have fun with it. Team names that use offensive or vulgar language, as determined by the NYIC committee in its sole discretion, may be automatically disqualified. The NYIC committee reserves the right to contact teams to mandate changes in team names that it deems inappropriate. 

3. Advisors

Secondary school teams are required to have one advisor, who must be a teacher/educator at the school where their student team(s) attend.

The team advisor provides student teams with guidance, encouragement and structure throughout the competition. Please note that an advisor’s role is NOT to make decisions for competing students or participate actively in teamwork and strategy development. 

Advisors may play different roles and should discuss the advising expectations with your team(s) before the competition begins.

  • Advisors must provide consent and be knowledgeable of the registration of the students. Students are NOT permitted to register for the competition on their own behalf or on behalf of their team without their knowledge. If this rule is violated the team will not be permitted to compete. Later, the advisor must provide the school documentation letter which must be submitted along with the team’s final report.

  • Motivating your student team(s) and checking their investment portfolio from time to time. Some teams that register for the competition may drop off midway because they lose interest or lack guidance. Please help to keep them in the competition and encourage them to submit the final report. 

  • Informing NYIC committee if you suspect that one or more of your team members is involved in dishonesty and plagiarism from other teams in the creation of the final report and strategy. 

  • Acting as a sounding board for your team without actually doing any of the hands-on work. 

  • Total follow-through. If one or more of your teams are among the finalists, we hope you will support their final presentations and even accompany them to the Final Round in KYUEM. 

  • Assisting in recording PAJSK marks for the students involved.

An advisor can oversee a maximum of five teams. However, there is no limit to the number of competing teams per school.

Teams are permitted to ask a parent or other adult to serve as a secondary advisor, but they must also have a primary teacher advisor. However, the use of paid advisors, education consultants, or other agents is prohibited. Teams suspected by the NYIC committee of using paid advisors, education consultants, extracurricular coursework, or other agents will be disqualified from the competition.

Teams are not permitted to change their advisor. If a team needs to change their advisor due to extenuating circumstances, a written request must first be submitted to and approved by the support@nyic.my. Teams that attempt to change their advisor without first submitting a written request will be eliminated from the competition. 

4. AI Policy

You may use generative AI applications (e.g., tools like Gemini, ChatGPT) to help generate ideas and brainstorm. However, you should note that the material generated by these programs may be inaccurate or problematic. Beware that overuse may limit your own independent thinking and creativity. You may not submit any work generated by an AI program as your own. Any plagiarism of other teams or other form of cheating will be dealt with severely under relevant Investment Competition policies.

5. Code of Conduct

The code of conduct extends to how students and advisors treat teammates, supervisors, and the competition organizers. We expect teams to behave politely and respectfully through in-person, email and social media interactions, and to communicate any concerns or grievances with a courteous tone and language. NYIC will not tolerate negative, threatening or off-color behavior of any kind, and will sanction or disqualify teams for any such behavior at its sole discretion. 

Submitted materials that violate any laws or intellectual property restrictions, are offensive, incite violence, or are otherwise deemed inappropriate for viewing by the general public (for purposes of this competition) will not be accepted. Regardless of whether a team is selected for the final round, each team retains ownership of their own work. 

NYIC and the policies which govern the competition prohibits unlawful discrimination based on race, color, gender and religion.

NYIC committee has the right to update rules from time to time.

TIPS:

1.We strongly encourage diversification, which is spreading investments across various financial instruments, industries, geographic regions, and asset classes (e.g., stocks, bonds, real estate, cash). True diversification is more than just owning many stocks—it’s about owning the right mix of assets across various dimensions. By diversifying across sectors, industries, and companies, investors build resilience into their portfolios, reduce downside risk, and enhance long-term return potential.