Rishi Niranjan
Topics of Interest: Finance, Stock Basics, Beginning-Level Investing
Meet Rishi Niranjan: a freshman in the Canfield Business Honors program dedicated to spreading stock market education at the high school level. He started the Community of Aspiring Shareholders Club Corp. – better known as CASH – as a 501(c)(3) organization when he was in high school, and under his leadership, the organization has expanded to include guest speakers and branches in over 50 schools.
Keep reading to learn more about Rishi’s background in finance!
How did you first get interested in finance?
When I was 12, my friends and I were looking for games to play on the app store and we found this investing app. It gives you free money to invest in the stock market and we would compete to see who could make the most money. We called it fantasy finance – like fantasy football, but in finance. Eventually, I realized that stock investing was a great way to apply my passion for math and numbers.
When I got to high school, I wanted to make sure that the stigma against investing as a “professionals-only” activity was broken by providing like-minded students with the opportunity to learn and practice investing principles. Today, I am most proud of the community of future investors that has come out of this project, and I hope that it will continue to grow and prosper.
What exactly does your finance club do?
In high school, I realized that the investing and finance world has this stigma that it’s only for professionals: you have to know what you’re doing, it’s very serious, etc. But after playing that game with my friends, I knew we could find a way to make investing fun. When we were searching for apps we found this Invstr app, back when it was new. They didn’t have very many users and we thought, “This app makes investing approachable to people our age.”
I then started a network of investment clubs, called CASH, where we go through stock market basics and practice them in a simulated environment. We partnered with the stock market simulator Invstr where we provide them with users and feedback on their app. Now there are branches at over 50 schools where clubs interact with each other through guest speaker events, workshops, and other events that my team and I plan and organize.
Now that you’ve graduated high school, how do you remain involved in CASH? How can CBHP students get involved as well?
I still organize events across all our branches including pitch competitions, guest speaker sessions, and professional workshops. These mainly occur in the virtual setting and involve developing a strong network of financial professionals that are passionate about sharing their experiences with high school students. At the organizational level, I advise and oversee the executive team that is split into departments that handle marketing, curriculum, outreach, and logistics.
Since the club currently supports high school students, CBHP students that begin to gain professional experience can share their knowledge and journey with our current members through a guest speaker event. It’s really important for CBHP students and every one our age in general, to start investing because once they turn 18 they can get better returns overtime on their earned money.
What advice would you give to students trying to break into finance?
As I am thinking of going into finance, I am also still figuring things out; thus I would suggest the main focus should be to see if you are passionate about finance. I would suggest that students interested in finance should try and immerse themselves as much as possible in the industry through the financial news, speaking with experienced professionals, and attending information sessions.