London, 24th September 2026 — GAIN (Girls Are INvestors), the UK registered charity dedicated to increasing gender diversity in investment management, last night celebrated the winners of the 2026 GAIN Awards.
The awards recognise achievement across all of GAIN’s programmes. This includes the Schools Investment Challenge, the University Investment Challenge, the GAIN Investment Insight Programme (GIIP) and the Empower Investment Internship Programme. They also recognise the mentors, volunteers, alumni and university societies who make that work possible.
The evening comes at a time of real growth for GAIN. In 2025, the charity reached more than 12,500 students, and over 1,120 young women and non-binary students completed structured GAIN programmes. Yet structural challenges remain across the industry. Women make up 41% of investment management employees in the UK¹, but only 12.9% of fund managers are female².
Tilly Franklin, Founder of GAIN, said:
“When GAIN started, the question we were asked most often was: why does this need to exist? The answer was always the same. Because talent is everywhere, but the doors to this industry were not open to everyone. That is still why we exist, and tonight has shown exactly what happens when we do. None of what you have seen this evening happens without the mentors who gave belief as much as time, the volunteers who change what young women think is possible, and the firms who open their doors and invest in a pipeline this industry desperately needs.”
Tanya Tracey, Chief Executive Officer of GAIN, added:
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GAIN would like to thank Apollo Global Management for hosting the evening. Thanks also go to every firm and individual who presented an award, and to the volunteers, mentors and partners who support GAIN all year round.
The 2026 GAIN Award winners:
Schools Investment Challenge
Presented by Tracy Vegro, CISI
Nearly 800 students in more than 150 teams took part this year, from schools across England and the Channel Islands. Each team analysed a real listed company, wrote a research report and produced a stock pitch video, judged by industry professionals.
- Winner: Dr Challoner’s High School, Team 2. The team built a sell case on Burberry, backed by primary research and a comparison with Prada. One judge summed it up simply: “Excellent. No negatives.”
- Runner-up: Wimbledon High School, Team 1. The team went beyond published research on Tesco, visiting supermarkets and carrying out their own basket pricing analysis. The judges called it “a new benchmark for this competition.”
University Investment Challenge
Presented by Maud Bridel and Maria Sveidahl, Brown Advisory
This is the UK’s first stock pitch competition exclusively for women and non-binary students. In its first year, 52 teams from 25 universities entered, with five finalist teams pitching live.
- Winner: London Business School Women in Business Society, for a sharp, clearly structured pitch on WH Smith. The five team members didn’t know each other before the challenge, and have since built a network to support each other into investment careers.
- Runner-up: LSE Women in Entrepreneurship Society
GIIP Student of the Year
Presented by Abigail Qin, CD&R
Over ten weeks, 175 students joined weekly sessions, received mentoring and attended Spring Days hosted by 17 partner firms.
- Nominees: Phillipa Bangura, Alessandra Manta Solis, Esme Thomas-Marshall
- Winner: Esme Thomas-Marshall. Hallie Farber at Apollo praised her sharp, well-researched questions and her “raw talent and hunger to learn.”
- Runner-up: Phillipa Bangura. Her mentor, Mahgul Ansari, highlighted her ability to think independently and challenge conventional assumptions.
Intern of the Year (2025 cohort)
Presented by Hallie Farber, Apollo
In 2025, the Empower Investment Internship Programme placed 130 students into fully paid summer internships, supported by technical training from AmplifyMe and FactSet.
- Nominees: Theodora Anastasiou, Holly Watson, Darcy Munro
- Winner: Darcy Munro, Columbia Threadneedle Investments. Olivia Pether described her as “an all-rounder in the truest sense” across data, research, analysis and communication.
- Runner-up: Holly Watson, VenCap. Talia Antioco said Holly added real value to the organisation and “is already dearly missed.”
Society of the Year
Presented by Wen-Wen Lindroth, GIC
GAIN now partners with 98 societies at 57 universities across the UK.
- Winner: Nottingham Economics and Finance Society. The society hosted two events championing GAIN’s work and played a direct role in a significant rise in internship applications from their university.
- Runner-up: University College London Women in Finance Society
Alumni of the Year
Presented by Mabel Canham, FactSet
The winner and runners-up each receive a coaching package with executive and leadership coach Emma Kangis of EK Coaching.
- Winner: Dominique Trinidad, Fortem Capital. Since her 2023 internship with Lancaster Investment Management, Dominique has mentored, created content, spoken on panels and shown up whenever the GAIN team needs her.
- Runners-up: Hongyin Pan, Stockdale Street, and Giulia Marano, Corten Capital
Student of the Year
Presented by Anita Tiessen, Chair of GAIN
- Winner: Ivanna Dueñas García, University of Stirling. Ivanna leads her university’s society partnership with GAIN and completed the GIIP. She is also the only student with a 100% attendance record on the Student and Alumni Council.
Mentor of the Year: Schools Investment Challenge
Presented by Charlotte Holland, Mondrian
- Nominees: Metok Le, Stephen Jordan, Alexander Prowse
- Winner: Alexander Prowse, who mentored Harris Academy Purley. He attended every session and supported the team from first idea to final submission. One student said: “We created something that was authentically and entirely ours.”
Mentor of the Year: University Investment Challenge
Presented by Tanya Tracey
- Winner: Marek Hruby, GIC. He mentored the winning London Business School team, who said he “helped us grow as future investment professionals.”
Mentor of the Year: GIIP
Presented by Natasha Braginsky Mounier, GAIN Trustee
- Nominees: Ash Thaker, Cameron Hawkins, Karen Jermy
- Winner: Cameron Hawkins, Chorus Capital, for being consistently generous with his time and creating a space where students felt comfortable asking anything.
Mentor of the Year: Internship Programme (2025 cohort)
Presented by Sophie Meeran, Alta Advisers
- Nominees: Dami Lawal, Julio Utrera, Leila Kardouche
- Winner: Dami Lawal. He supported his mentee with care that went far beyond the placement, helping her find her next role and staying a guiding presence long after the internship ended.
Volunteer of the Year
Presented by Stephanie Slade, Troy
- Nominees: Mahgul Ansari, Lucy Lepore, Sian Evans
- Winner: Mahgul Ansari. Mahgul gives in every direction: mentoring, creating content, speaking, championing opportunities outside London and helping shape GAIN’s volunteer community through the Volunteer Advisory Council.
Congratulations to every winner, runner-up and nominee. If you’d like to get involved with GAIN as a volunteer, mentor or partner firm, find out more here.
About GAIN
GAIN (Girls Are INvestors) is a UK registered charity (number 1182317) founded by investment professionals to address the persistent gender imbalance in investment management. Working with students from secondary school through to university and beyond, GAIN delivers free programmes, insight days, competitions, internships and mentoring initiatives that equip young women and non-binary students with the skills, knowledge and connections to build careers in investment management. GAIN’s long-term objective is to increase the female application rate across the UK investment industry to over 30% within ten years.
Notes to Editors
- All programme statistics for 2025 are drawn from GAIN’s 2025 Impact Report, which is available here.
Sources
1 The Investment Association, Investment Management in the UK 2023–2024.
2 Citywire, Alpha Female Report 2025.
