Bank of Canada announces finalists for the fourth annual Governor’s Challenge

The Bank of Canada today announced the five finalist teams in the 2018–19 edition of The Governor’s Challenge, a competition where university students simulate the role of advisor to the Bank’s Governing Council.

Congratulations to:

• University of Alberta, coached by Malik Shukayev and Max Sties
• University of British Columbia, coached by Viktoria Hnatkovska and Jonathan Graves
• Université de Sherbrooke, coached by David Dupuis
• University of Toronto (St. George Campus), coached by Martin Burda and Serdar Ozkan
• Wilfrid Laurier University, coached by Christos Shiamptanis and Ke Pang

With special mention to the runner-up teams:

• Lakehead University
• University of Ottawa
• University of Toronto (Mississauga Campus)

Governor Stephen S. Poloz thanked all the students for participating and the professors for coaching their teams through to this stage. “I see the students competing in the Governor’s Challenge as among those who could shape the future of economics and finance,” he said. “With the skills they develop—analysis, ingenuity and imagination—and inspiration from their teachers, I look forward to seeing what they do next.”

Notes for editors:

• The first round of this year’s competition took place November 21–22, 2018, with presentations delivered by video conference. More than 100 students from 24 Canadian universities participated. The final round will take place Saturday, February 16, 2019, at the Bank’s head office in Ottawa.
• Working in teams, students provided analysis and forecasts on developments in the economy. They then presented a monetary policy recommendation to keep inflation low and stable, in line with the Bank’s inflation target of 2 per cent. The judges evaluated teams on the substance of their analysis, the quality of their presentation and evidence of strong teamwork.
• The team from Wilfrid Laurier University won last year’s competition.