In an effort to revive a club for teenage investors and traders, student leaders held an inaugural meeting for the Young Investor Society on Feb. 10.

“It went inactive during quarantine, so my friend Carter and I decided to revive the club because we felt it was important to create a community for investing, learning and growth,” senior and President Irgen Soeriawinata said. “We wanted to create a platform that allowed students to ask questions and take the first steps for their financial future.”

A whopping 90% of investors, mainly amateurs, lose their money in stocks and other investments. While some investors believe it is impossible to outperform the market, Soeriawinata is determined to help make a dent in that number by educating young investors.

“I hope to get people started and confident in the [investment] industry as a whole and help them build a foundation of knowledge on analysis and get invested in themselves,” Soeriawinata said.

At their first meeting, members like sophomore Varun Manickam said they had many aligning goals for their future in the club.

“There are a lot of people here who are pretty smart and we all share like-minded ideas, so bouncing off each other would be pretty cool,” Manickam said. “Hopefully, I’ll be able to become smarter when it comes to investing.”

Many of the members, including junior and Marketing Manager Ali Faruqui, gained interest for stocks and cryptocurrency during quarantine, when the Young Investors Society remained largely inactive.

“When COVID-19 hit us and we transferred online, I began to take a more active role in my investments,” Faruqui said. “In the almost two years [that have passed], I have managed to learn quite a bit and am eager to learn more.”

Junior and Co-President Carter Sasser said that the pandemic played a large role in his introduction to the world of finance.

“I got into investment over the pandemic as a hobby and something that I could use to help me in the future,” Sasser said. “I think this [interest] showed with our large turnout on the first meeting. It just gave me and the other officers more motivation to grow the club and to really put effort into making something that works for everyone.”

While the officer team shoulders most of the club’s responsibilities, new members are always welcome—regardless of investing background.

“My role in our club is to help people who are completely unaware and new to the stock market and investing,” junior and Treasurer Grant Griffiths said, “I hope to teach them what the market is and how investing early can set you up for success later in life.”

Despite only 6% of investors ‘beating the market’ within the past 20 years, Soeriawinata said he still believes in the future of investing, reasoning that this number will inflate in a couple of years.

“I think it is a possibility for people our age to increase the average number of successful investors because of how willing our generation is to invest in risky assets like the metaverse and cryptocurrency,” Soeriawinata said. “If these developments pan out, many people can turn out big profits.”

Griffiths said he believes that cryptocurrency is taking over the world, and in order to keep up with the current market, students have to be educated to succeed in investing.

“I am really excited to share everything I know and continue to learn with people in the club,” Griffiths said.