Inaugural summit, presented by the Gerald Schwartz School of Business and RBC Capital Markets, offered a full day of experiential learning, pairing a live trading challenge and a stock pitch competition with insights from RBC Capital Markets professionals, four of them StFX alumni.
On Saturday, October 24, 2026, the Gerald Schwartz School of Business at St. Francis Xavier University hosted the inaugural StFX Investment Summit, presented in partnership with RBC Capital Markets. Five teams from four Atlantic universities (Acadia University, Dalhousie University, the University of New Brunswick, and StFX) came to Antigonish to put classroom learning into practice in two head-to-head challenges: a live Investment competition on a virtual trading simulator and a stock pitch competition judged by industry professionals.
The summit builds on last year’s Xaverian Stock Pitch Competition, in which 10 StFX students pitched companies ranging from ExxonMobil to NVIDIA. This year the event grew in every direction: students competed in teams of two, a trading challenge ran alongside the stock pitch, and the final brought in the best teams from across the region.
“The StFX Investment Summit was established to fill the gap between the real world and classroom teaching,” says faculty organizer Dr. Vijay Vishwakarma, associate professor of finance at the Gerald Schwartz School of Business. “Students listen directly to leading experts in finance, interact with them, and ask questions about the many unknowns of this complex world. That is experiential learning at its best: they apply classroom concepts under real pressure, sharpen their analytical skills, and build confidence in public speaking.”
Dr. Vishwakarma notes that this kind of event matters for a university like StFX. Because StFX is located outside Canada’s major financial centres, students can have limited access to industry networks and competitive finance events. The summit brings both to campus and turns them into hands-on learning.
The competition unfolded in two phases. The internal StFX screening opened on September 7. Teams of two were each assigned a North American-listed company and submitted a one-page written pitch and a three-minute video by October 2. An industry expert reviewed the submissions, and the top-ranked StFX teams advanced to the Atlantic-wide final.
In the final phase, every team started from the same point. The StFX teams and the visiting teams from Acadia, Dalhousie, and UNB each selected and were assigned a new company, built a full investment case as an equity research analyst would, and submitted a presentation deck the day before the event.
The day opened with an AI session led by Jacob Davis (StFX alumnus), Head of QTS Gen AI Product Management at RBC Capital Markets. He explained the differences between Gen AI models and agents, showed how to build an effective prompt framework for an agent, and described how the technology is used across capital markets, including practical ways to cut down on repetitive tasks.
An industry panel followed, featuring Annie Hennessey (StFX graduate), Senior Manager, Intake and Governance Intelligent Automation, and Zach Forsythe (StFX graduate), Analyst, OTC Derivative Operations, alongside Josh Franchuk, Regional Manager, Futures Treasury, and Fei Han, CFA, Associate Director, Derivatives Confirmations. The panellists shared their career journeys and practical advice on standing out in a competitive field, the growing role of AI in finance, professional credentials and lifelong learning, women in finance, and the lasting strength of the StFX alumni network.
They encouraged students to pursue experiences that set them apart, whether challenging courses, certifications, athletics, or meaningful extracurricular activities, and to reach out to alumni early in their careers.
Kevin Sweeney, Managing Director and Head, Global Markets Transaction Services at RBC Capital Markets, joined the panel online. Drawing on his own career, he described how strong math skills had served him throughout, and urged students to follow their passion, take advantage of every opportunity, and learn to use AI rather than fear it.
Guest speaker Kate Campbell, Director of Front Office Regulatory Technology & Supervision at RBC Capital Markets, leads Fortress, the firm’s pre-trade checks platform that ensures trading compliance.
She showed how designing AI-enabled products with guardrails in place helps serve clients better. Many people understand technology, she noted, but few also understand capital markets; graduates who can combine the two will stand out in today’s job market.
In the Investment Competition, teams made rapid trading decisions on a virtual simulator as market news unfolded, experiencing first-hand what it means to manage a portfolio in a changing market. The session was run by StFX graduate Riley Hurlbert, Senior Analyst, U.S. Municipal Syndicate & Trade Support, and Kyle Patterson, Analyst, Canadian Securities Settlements, both of RBC Capital Markets.
In the afternoon, each team delivered a 10-minute buy-or-sell recommendation on its assigned company, followed by five minutes of questioning from an experienced panel of judges: Stuart Tabor, CFA (StFX alumnus), Associate Portfolio Manager at Sionna Investment Managers; Andrew Bradshaw, CFP®, CIM®, RIAC, MFA-P™ (StFX alumnus), of Bradshaw Private Wealth; and Fei Han, CFA, of RBC Capital Markets. “Their expertise provided valuable insights and feedback to the participants,” says Dr. Vishwakarma.
The overall summit winners were determined by combining results from both competitions, with the stock pitch weighted at 70 per cent and the Investment Competition at 30 per cent.
The day closed with an evening networking session, where members of the RBC Capital Markets team met with selected students and connected with prospective candidates for summer internships, extending the day’s learning into real career connections.
Overall summit winners:
First place ($500): St. Francis Xavier University (StFX2), Jordan Blandford and Clayton McDougall (Constellation Energy Corp., CEG)
Second place ($300): Dalhousie University, Nathaniel Dixon and Malcolm Hill (Micron Technology Inc., MU)
Third place ($200): University of New Brunswick, Isaac Jewett and Tim Foley (Constellation Brands, Inc., STZ)
The field also included St. Francis Xavier University (StFX1), Domenica Huila Sanchez and Parker Evans (Pembina Pipeline Corporation), and Acadia University, Jayden Thibodeau and Noah Ryan (Uber), who both delivered strong performances.
The winning StFX2 team recommended a BUY on Constellation Energy, with a 12-to-18-month price target of $324, about 20 per cent above the then-current price of roughly $270. Their thesis: “Constellation Energy is a great business without AI, and an even better business with AI, because its large nuclear fleet provides visible earnings growth today and valuable exposure to future data-centre power demand.”
“The experience as a whole was awesome,” says Clayton McDougall. “Getting the chance to pitch in front of well-respected individuals in the finance world is an opportunity we are very thankful for, and we appreciate all the support we received. I would recommend being part of an event like this to all students. I took great value from it and learned a lot.”
“The summit gave us a chance to apply our knowledge in a real-world setting and challenge ourselves,” says Jordan Blandford. “It was a great learning experience, and I’m grateful to have been part of it.”
Faculty members also attended to stay current with emerging trends in finance. Prof. Yen Nguyen said the sessions and competition were valuable for both her teaching and her own learning, and that she found Jacob Davis’s discussion of AI’s future use and industry progress particularly interesting, especially his tips on using prompts and agents to reduce repetitive work.
Students who hope to compete in future pitch events said that watching the live presentations and Q&A, and seeing what set the winning teams apart, was a valuable experiential learning opportunity. Others stressed how important it was to hear directly from industry professionals about the skill set finance students need to develop to stand out.
The RBC team was equally enthusiastic. “We were greatly impressed by the polish demonstrated by the competitors, as well as by the tremendous reception from faculty and other attendees,” says Kyle Patterson of RBC Capital Markets. “It was incredibly gratifying — and a lot of fun — to trade perspectives with the cohort and give students a glimpse into how the concepts they study could be applied within the COO group. We believe we have found a winning formula with this event and look forward to continuing this success down the road.”
Dr. Vishwakarma thanked the students for their enthusiastic participation, Dean Lisa Watson for her support, and RBC Capital Markets for sponsoring the summit and making this experiential learning opportunity possible. RBC’s contribution went beyond financial support: its team was involved at every step. He extended special thanks to Riley Hurlbert and Kyle Patterson, whose tireless work made the day possible, and to the organizing team: Prof. Chen Zhang and students Avery Leno, Reese Myers, Taryn Wallace, and Hughie Murphy.
For four StFX students, the experiential learning continues into the new year. The top two StFX teams from the screening round, Jordan Blandford and Clayton McDougall (StFX2) and Domenica Huila Sanchez and Parker Evans (StFX1), will join forces as a single four-member team to represent StFX at Battle on Bay, the national stock pitch competition in Toronto, in the second week of January 2027.
