The Monmouth Finance Society (MFS) took a trip organized by Ken Young, Dr. Jeneath Merkle, and Cathy Dorothy to the New York Stock Exchange on Feb. 11.
The Monmouth Finance Society was founded by Arseniy Shafran, a business administration major, last spring after he realized there wasn’t a student organization dedicated to finance and economic students. Shafran explained that the MFS connects students with industry professionals in finance and economics.
Shafran said, “The purpose of the NYSE trip was to expose students to the world’s financial capital. This was not just a tour of the building—students had the opportunity to interact with professionals from various firms at the NYSE, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and others. They also witnessed the live IPO of Brazilian bank AGI and had the opportunity to speak with Jay Woods, who has worked at the NYSE for decades. His insights and advice were especially valuable for our members.”
The Monmouth Finance Society has three total trips planned for this semester. Having already completed the NYSE trip, the organization has scheduled the Barclays Career Trek on Apr. 1 and the Federal Reserve Trip for Apr. 3
Garrett Johnston, an executive member of the MU Finance Society and one of the fifteen students who attended the NYSE trip said, “During the trip, we met Jay Woods, a former NYSE specialist and current CNBC contributor, who gave us a detailed tour and overview of the exchange’s history. He was very insightful and I got to learn about his role and what he does. It was interesting to see the NYSE’s operations firsthand, and we also happened to watch a new company go public and ring the opening bell.”
Shafran said that his club hosts regular workshops, guest speakers and are planning to launch a student-managed fund to teach students how portfolio management works. The MFS expects to host 12-14 speakers this semester from companies such as Morgan Stanley, Apollo Management, JPMorgan, and Société Générale.
The club meets every Wednesday from 2:45 p.m. to 4:15 p.m.
