Past Events

Highlights from CFA Society Greece's Events 

2023 Events

Summer Party

Our annual Summer Party took place in 27 June at Balthazar, with over 80 members and candidates attending. 

1st Private Wealth Management Conference 

Our inaugural Private Wealth Management Conference took place on 15 June, 2023 at the Athens Capital Hotel with over 80 attendees from the Greek and international private wealth management and legal communities. 

The themes of discussion covered multiple areas of interest within wealth management including investment strategy, tax and legal issues as well as investing in the new ESG era that is dictated by the new generation of investors coming into decision-making positions. The objective was to provide useful insights that may assist in making more informed investment decisions and bringing improved performance to portfolios. 

The conference included a keynote presentation by Natasa Stamou, Vice Chair of HCMC and a presentation by Marios Rafail, Head of Geneva Office at Henley & Partners Switzerland.  

The first panel discussion "Market Trends" was moderated by Alexia Drakopoulou, CFA, who guided a stimulating discussion with panelists Fotios Kassianidis, PhD, Konstantinos Peppas and Ilias Sylivanis, who provided their insights into the outlook for the global and Greek markets. All three panelists stressed upon the positive prospects for the Greek economy relying on stability, strong entrepreneurship, tourism revenues, and measures attracting new investment funds. View a clip of the discussion here. 

In the second panel, "Tax Issues and Legal Considerations for HNWI and Family Offices", Panagiotis Pothos lead the highly insightful discussion with panelists Kostas Kounadis, Petros Machas and Marios Rafail, which covered important topics such as wealth relocation and citizenship by investment, establishing trusts and the intricacies of establishing family offices. A clip of the discussion on trusts is available here. 

In the final panel, "Embedding Alternative Investments and ESG Considerations into Traditional Portfolios" our moderator, Laura Merlini, CAIA, CIFD engaged our panelists Aveesh Acharya, Christos Avramides and Chrysanthi Vakla in a thought-provoking discussion with some key takeaways that included the critical importance of high-quality ESG data availability, emphasizing the returns of alternative investments vs. their risks and the attractiveness of VC as an alternative investment. The clip of concluding remarks is here. 

The 1st Private Wealth Management Conference was sponsored by Grant Thornton Greece (Gold Sponsor), Systemic RM S.A. (Silver Sponsor) and Euro2day (Media Sponsor). CAIA Association joined us as Educational Partner and Hellenic Fund and Asset Management Association as Supporter. 

ESG and Energy Transition Talks with Bloomberg

CFA Society Greece hosted an event on 18 May in collaboration with Bloomberg. The Greek investment community was not deterred by the political rallies taking place that night ahead of the national election and showed their commitment to learning and professional development by attending our ESG and Energy Transition Talks with Bloomberg speakers Bartosz Czekierda and ANDREAS GANDOLFO. Our speakers provided practical information and insights to our audience and an interactive Q&A session lead my CFA Society Greece's President Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA followed.

15th Annual Forecast Dinner

Our annual signature event took place on 21 February, 2023 at the InterContinental Hotel, with guest speakers Yianos Kontopoulos, CEO at Athens Exchange Group and Gordon Harding, Vice President and Fixed Income Specialist at PIMCO.  The central theme of the sold-out event was "Peaking Inflation and Rates: How Will Risky Assets Perform and Will Greek Assets Show Resilience?" 

Over 100 CFA charterholders, CFA Program candidates and members of the Greek investment community attended the event, which was hosted by Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA, CFA Society Greece's President. 

New Year's Party

Our New Year's Party was held on 19 January, 2023 at the Black Duck. complete with the traditional cutting of our New Year cake by the Society's president, Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA. It was our first time hosting the event since 2020. 

 

2022 Events

19th Charter Award Ceremony

We welcomed 33 new charterholders at our annual award ceremony, many of whom were in attendance to hear motivational speeches from our guest speakers, Alexander Singer, CFA, First President and founding member of CFA Society Greece, Theofanis Mylonas, CEO at Eurobank Asset Management and Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA, CFA Society Greece's President. 

View the full list of new charterholders

ESG Investment Integration and Analysis: A Deep-dive into ClearBridge's ESG Perspective

CFA Society Greece hosted its first event of the new season with Franklin Templeton, a live-talk with Ryan Virag, CFA,  Managing Director, Client Portfolio Manager at ClearBridge Investments (part of Franklin Templeton) on "ESG Investment Integration and Analysis: A Deep-dive into ClearBridge's ESG Perspective" on Tuesday, September 13, 2022.

Clearbridge has evolved its ESG investment integration and analysis for over 30 years and always strives to keep up with global industry demands. During this live talk attendees gained a unique perspective from one of the large, pure public equity, US-based asset managers who has few peers that have been doing it as long in the US.  Ryan talked about why process rooted in direct company engagement, driven by in-house fundamental investment teams is favored over relying solely on third party data or "ESG-only" teams for investment decisions. He also touched on examples of key ESG issues over the years, to current time, illustrated through company examples, the effects of ESG greenwashing and how to meet fast moving regulatory and client demands in Europe.

A lively and interactive Q&A session followed. 

Delphi Economic Forum VII Panel Discussion 

CFA Society Greece hosted a panel discussion, "How ESG Practices Create Value for Corporations and Society" at Delphi Economic Forum VII, with panelists Paul Moody, CAIA, from CFA Institute, Omiros Sarikas, from Brookstreet Equity Partners and Dimitris Batzis, from Schroder Investment Management.  The discussion was moderated by CFA Society Greece's President, Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA. 

Watch the replay below.

Webinar | AI and Big Data in Investments

On 10 March 2022, CFA Society Greece hosted the AI and Big Data in Investments webinar with guest speaker Larry Cao, CFA.   During the webinar, Larry coverd some of  the benefits of using AI and big data in investments that AI and big data pioneers have found, the latest status of adoption across the industry for these technologies and the main hurdles that investors have come across in applying AI and big data and the most effective approach to overcome them. He also shared some live use cases in production at various investment firms in equities, fixed income, and asset allocation.

CFA Institute Research Challenge Local Final 2022

The Local Final of the 2021-2022 Research Challenge took place on Saturday, 26 February, 2022 at the Electra Palace Hotel in Athens.  The nine teams presented their recommendations to the panel judges, showcasing their hard-work and rigorous analysis of the subject company, Papoutsanis S.A.  The University of Macedonia won the local final and moves on the sub-regional round of the competition.

See below for pictures from the event.

14th Annual Forecast Dinner

Our 14th Annual Forecast Dinner took place virtually on Thursday, 17 February 2022 with keynote speaker Jim Reid, Managing Director & Global Head of the Fundamental Credit Strategy & Thematic Research at Deutsche Bank and guest speakers, Konstantinos Kazas and Diamantis Giannakopoulos, CFA from our Platinum Sponsor, Grant Thornton Greece. More than 100 participants from the local and international investment communities joined the online event.

2021 Events

Panel Discussion |  Key Takeaways from UN Climate Change Conference COP26

On 2 December we hosted a virtual panel discussion "Key Takeaways from UN Climate Change Conference COP26" with panelists, Dr. Phoebe Koundouri, Professor at Athens University of Economics and Business, Josina Kamerling, Head of Regulatory Outreach EMEA at CFA Institute and Antonis Kyrkos, Group Transformation and Strategic Planning Director at TITAN Cement Group.   


During the discussion that was moderated by CFA Society Greece's President,  Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA. Dr. Phoebe Koundouri, Josina Kamerling and Antonis Kyrkos discussed the key takeaways from COP 26 and shared their perspectives on the progress achieved during the Summit as well as next steps in the fight against climate change.

Watch the replay here. 

18th Charter Award Ceremony

On 5 October, 2021, CFA Society Greece hosted the 18th Charter Award Ceremony, the first in person event since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.  We celebrated the achievement of 27 new charterholders (14 were in attendance) who earned the CFA charter in 2020 and 2021.  

CFA Society Greece President, Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA, congratulated the new charterholders and spoke about the local and international opportunities that lie ahead for the new charterholders and the distinguishing ethical practices of CFA charterholders.  Guest speakers William Tohmé, CFA, Senior Head, MENA Region and Intern Managing Director for EMEA at CFA Institute and Xenofon Damalas, CFA, Head of Investor Relations at Piraeus Bank spoke about the benefits of the CFA charter and the importance of professional learning. 

A cocktail reception followed for the new charterholders and their guests. 

Webinars

Important Factors to Consider When Investing in Private Equity & How ESG Affects These

CFA Society Greece hosted its first webinar of the season on "Important factors to consider when investing in private equity and how ESG affects these" with Steve Balaban, CFA, Private Equity Chief Investment Officer of Mink Capital. 
During the webinar, Steve spoke about the important factors to consider when investing in private equity and how ESG affects these.

Some topics covered also included:

  • The decision of whether or not to invest in private equity in 2021
  • The methods to invest in private equity
  • How ESG affects private equity investments
  • Secrets to finding and buying private companies
Digital Transformation: Winners & Losers

CFA Society hosted a second webinar with Franklin Templeton on "Digital Transformation: Winners and Losers” with Jonathan Curtis*, Senior Vice President, Research Analyst & Portfolio Manager of Franklin Equity Group at Franklin Templeton, on Thursday, May 6, 2021. In this brief webinar, Jonathan Curtis discussed the multi-trillion dollar innovation opportunity seen in Digital Transformation (DT). Within DT’s there are 10 enabling sub-themes, and he discussed the types of businesses Franklin Templeton focuses on.  He also talked about how the Covid crisis brought the DT opportunity into sharp focus for investors, consumers, enterprises, and governments and their belief that we are at the beginning of this opportunity.  He also touched briefly on current market valuations.

Checking and Reviewing a Financial Model

CFA Society Greece was pleased to welcome back Ian Schnoor, CFA, AFM, of the Financial Modeling Institute (FMI) to host Topic 2 of their learning series on Financial Modeling, Checking and Reviewing a Financial Model. In this installment, Ian showed attendees how to check and review a financial model to ensure that it is accurate. He demonstrated some powerful tips to check and audit a financial model and discussed an optimal methodology to review a financial model.

The Future of Networking & Your Digital Presence

We hosted our first soft skills webinar "The Future of Networking & Your Digital Presence" with speakers Sameer Somal, CFA, CFP, CAIA and Melanie McKelvey, on 9 March, 2021.  The event focused on good networking tactics and how participants can bolster and monitor their digital reputation by building and controlling their own narrative.

Learning objectives of the webinar included:

  • Understanding and successfully navigating the “new normal” for business and relationships in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Recognizing the necessity of an authentic digital presence
  • Proactively curating a narrative online when faced with choice overload
  • Practicing actionable strategies to optimize your digital reputation
  • Discerning best practice considerations for CFA Charterholders and finance industry leaders

CFA Institute Research Challenge Local Final 2021

After nearly four months of research and analysis, the nine teams participating in the 2020-2021 Research Challenge competition, hosted in Athens, presented their recommendations on Kri Kri Milk Industry share to our panel of judges on 27 February, 2021. The University of Macedonia won the local competition and moves on to compete in the EMEA sub-regional competition.

13th Annual Forecast Dinner

The 13th Annual Forecast Dinner took place virtually on Tuesday, 23 February, 2021 with guest speakers Guillaume Jaisson, Strategist, Global Investment Research Division at Goldman Sachs and Ilias Lekkos, Chief Economist and Assistant General Manager at Piraeus Bank Group. More than 100 participants from the local and international investment communities joined the online event.

2020 Events

12th Annual Forecast Dinner

The 12th Annual Forecast Dinner took place at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on 26 February, 2020 with guest speakers Gary Baker, CFA (Managing Director, EMEA Region, CFA Institute, Daniel Loesche, CFA  (Ιnvestment Director, Credit, Schroders) and Dr. Konstantinos Kalligeros (Director, Commodities, Commerzbank).  The dinner was hosted by CFA Society Greece Vice-President, Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA.

Research Challenge Local Final 2020

Seven teams from eight Greek universities participated in the Athens local final of the Research Challenge competition.  The participating teams showed strong dedication, exceptional quality of work and presentation skills.  The winning team, University of Piraeus, moved on to place as an EMEA regional semi-finalist. 

ESG Incorporation in the Greek Market

CFA Society hosted a workshop on ESG Incorporation in the Greek Market with the support of PRI (Principles for Responsible Investment) guest speaker Felix Soellner and the Hellenic Bankers Association – UK (HBA-UK).  The talk focused on ESG issues, integration techniques and practical examples within major asset classes, including real estate and private equity. The tools and frameworks available to investors were also discussed. 

Webinars

Earning Investors' Trust: Virtual Panel Discussion

On December 8, 2020, CFA Society Greece & CFA Society Cyprus hosted an online panel discussion on "Earning Investors' Trust". The event attracted more than 70 members of of the Greek, Cypriot and UK investment communities. The panel was moderated by Violeta Spyropoulou, CFA, Vice President of CFA Society Greece and included panelists Gary Baker, CFA, Managing Director, EMEA Region at CFA Institute, Nikolaos Kontaroudis, Vice Chairman of the Hellenic Capital Market Commission and George Theocharides, PhD, Vice Chairman of Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission.
Informed by the fourth edition of the CFA Institute Investor Trust Study, the moderated panel discussion touched on the following topics:

  • How information, innovation and technology can help build trust
  • The CFA Institute Trust Equation (Credibility + Professionalism  = Trust & Value) and the role of regulators
  • The path forward to building greater trust in capital markets and the investment industry
  • Interest for ESG Investing in Greece and Cyprus
  • New sustainability report from CFA Institute
Investing in Innovation

Οn November 10, 2020 CFA Society Greece hosted a webinar, "Investing in Innovation", presented by Matt Moberg, SVP & Portfolio Manager of Franklin Equity Group at Franklin Templeton.  During this brief webinar, Matt led a discussion on driving wealth creation through innovation investing, the importance of active management in innovation-focused investing, and where he see opportunities in innovation today.  The webinar drew great interest from our attendees who actively participated in the Q&A session.

Factors Influencing Private Investors' Investment Profile

CFA Society Greece hosted its first open event for the general public on 26 October, 2020, a webinar on "Factors Influencing Private Investors' Investment Profile", with guest speaker, Eleutheria Achladianaki, Managing Director of The Association of Members of the Athens Exchanges. The purpose of the webinar was to further enhance the investment literacy of the general public, thus contributing to the integrity of the capital markets and putting private investors in a position to ensure they are adequately protected when investing. The webinar focused on basic investment principles and the information that individual investors should receive before purchasing investment products.  More than 70 private investors working in the health, tourism, insurance and other industries joined the webinar. Over 20 students from local universities also attended the event.

The Outlook for Capital Markets over the Next 6-12 Months

On 15 October, 2020 we hosted a webinar with MRB Partners founding partner and global strategist, Peter Perkins. During the brief webinar, Peter discussed the outlook for capital markets over the next 6-12 months and MRB's global multi-asset allocation recommendations. He also examined:

  • Prospects for global equities and the corporate earnings cycle, as well as a potential rotation out of the U.S. into other markets
  • How to protect portfolios against equity risk given the absence of return potential in government bonds or cash
  • The case for gold in light of the monetary and fiscal backdrop
  • Risks for capital markets associated with the upcoming U.S. election

Python: Revolutionizing the Finance Industry

On Tuesday, 15 September, 2020 at 19:00 hosted our first webinar of the new season on "Python: Revolutionizing the Finance Industry" with Nick Christodoulopoulos, Head of Derivatives Market Making at Piraeus Securities. 
Over the past decades, spreadsheets have been the primary tool in Finance. However, Python, the incredibly popular and easy-to-learn programming language, is challenging the status quo and is becoming the most in-demand skill in the industry. During the webinar, Nick Christodoulopoulos explained why Python is a game changer for Finance professionals. He outlined the benefits of learning Python, discussed why it is much more than an "Excel on steroids" and demonstrated practical examples of its use.

Financial Modeling Best Practices

We hosted a webinar on “Financial Modeling Best Practices” with Ian Schnoor, CFA, AFM, Executive Director of the Financial Modeling Institute (FMI), in cooperation with the FMI on 9 July, 2020. During this 90-minute interactive webinar, Ian Schnoor presented and discussed some critical tools and skills required to build a best-in-class financial model that inspires confidence and leads to optimal decision making. Specific topics included:

  • The Discipline of Financial Modeling
  • Top 10 Modeling Best Practices
  • Key Modeling Tips
  • Skills to check a Financial Model
  • Great Modeling Technical Skills
EU Regulation in the Post-Pandemic Period

During this brief webinar, guest speaker Josina Kamerling, Head of Regulatory Outreach for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region for CFA Institute, provided an in-depth analysis on the European strategy on the financial sector in light of the Covid-19 crisis. She also discussed the current and future EU measures in the financial sector as well as the renewed focus on Capital Markets Union, with the aim of restarting the European economy and developing capital markets in the EU.  The presentation was followed by an interactive Q&A session. 

The Pandemic Revolution: Navigating Macro and Markets in the Post Covid World

On June 11, 2020, CFA Society Greece hosted a webinar on "The Pandemic Revolution: Navigating Macro and Markets in the Post Covid World" with Alberto Gallo, CFA, Fund Manager at Algebris Investments. During this brief webinar, Alberto Gallo discussed some of the changes that have been triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic, with a focus on macro factors and the global credit markets, including the role that public debt will play in shaping the post Covid world. A Q&A session followed, with questions submitted by the audience via Zoom's chat feature.  

Exploring 2020 GIPS Standards: Application to Asset Owners and Pooled Funds

On May 14, 2020 we hosted our first virtual GIPS event, "Exploring 2020 GIPS Standards, Application to Asset Owners and Pooled Funds" with guest speaker, Iain McAra, Director of Global Industry Standards at CFA Institute. The webinar was attended by CFA Society Greece ,embers, as well as members of the Hellenic Fund and Asset Management Association. The webinar focused on two areas that were impacted by the development of the 2020 GIPS standards:

i) Application of the GIPS standards to Asset Owners and

ii) Approach to calculation and presentation of limited distribution and broadly distributed pooled funds in the GIPS standards.

An overview of both of these topics and their treatment in the GIPS standards to ensure that the minimum set of information that is full, fair, consistent and comparable is delivered to the prospective investor was covered during the webinar. 

Foreign Exchange in Practice

As we try to innovate the ways in which deliver member value, on April 28, 2020 we hosted our first webinar on "Foreign Exchange in Practice" with Stavros Daliakopoulos, CFA, Head of FX & Derivatives Trading at Eurobank. In this short webinar, Stavros offered some insights into the foreign exchange (FX) market from a trader's perspective. Starting with the FX spot market, he showed the FX forward market and how it relates to the FX options market. During the webinar the actual tools used for trading and pricing were employed and the management of a foreign exchange options book was illustrated.  Members who attended the webinar provided positive feedback and expressed an interest in future webinars hosted by CFA Society Greece. 

2019 Events

Congratulations Class of 2019!

Fewer than 1 in 5 candidates become CFA charterholders.  We applaud those who became CFA charterholders in 2019 and joined our community of 168,000 charterholders worldwide. Together, we are building a better world for investing. CFA Society Greece honoured the class of 2019 at the annual Charter Award Ceremony, with guest speakers Richard Fernand, CFA, Senior Director of CDP and Kasia Marianiuk, Director of Society Relations, EMEA from CFA Institute and Nikolaos Porfiris, Chief Business Development Officer, Athens Exchange Group. 

CFA Society Greece President and ADMIE Holding Board President Ring the Closing Bell

CFA Society Greece hosted its local Research Challenge Kick-off Event at the Athens Stock Exchange on 14 November, 2019, with subject company ADMIE Holding. 

Students, faculty advisors and industry mentors were in attendance to hear executives from ADMIE Holding present the company. Following the corporate presentation, CFA Society Greece's President, Loukas Dedes, CFA, and Iason Rousopoulos, ADMIE Holding Boαrd President, rang the closing bell at the Exchange. 

Ethical Decision Making in Investment Management Workshop

CFA Society Greece welcomed Sonia Gandhi, CFA, Director – Ethics Education and Professional Standards at CFA Institute to run the Ethical Decision Making in Investment Management Workshop on 5 November, 2019.  The event was a great success with more than 50 participants from the Greek investment industry, including members of CFA Society Greece, and academia attending.

For more information on ethical decision making for investment professionals, click here.

Seminar on Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS)

CFA Society Greece, under the auspices of the Hellenic Fund and Asset Management Association, organized a seminar on "Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS)" on May 7, 2019, for the first time in Greece, by Mr. Iain McAra, Director of Investment Performance Standards for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region at CFA Institute. 

CFA Institute Research Challenge 2019

CFA Society Greece is happy to announce that the winner of the local "CFA Institute Research Challenge 2018-2019" is the team from the University of Piraeus. The team went on to place as a finalist in the EMEA regional competition. 

11th Annual Forecast Dinner

The trends of international stock indices for 2019, the reduction of non-performing loans in the Greek banking system and the investment environment in Greece were some of the topics discussed at the 11th Annual Forecast Dinner organized by CFA Society Greece. The dinner under the label "2019: Another year of uncertainty for financial markets" was held on 20 of February 2019, at Athens Hilton Hotel.