Investment Challenge Rules
Every team starts with $100,000 in virtual cash. Simulated orders are server validated, use cached stock prices only inside the protected student area, and are enabled only during regular US market hours.
Core rule
Phronesia is free. This is an educational simulation only. No real money is used, this is not financial advice, no brokerage execution happens, and market data is used only inside the student competition area.
Trading rules
Allowed universe
Featured tickers are shortcuts. Inside the protected student area, teams can search additional valid US-listed stocks and ETFs supported by the market data provider.
Scoring model
| Weight | Category | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| 40% | Total return | How much the portfolio grows or falls from the $100,000 starting balance. |
| 20% | Risk-adjusted performance | Rewards return while penalizing unstable or highly risky results. |
| 15% | Diversification | Full score requires no asset above 20% of total portfolio value. |
| 15% | Investment thesis | Teams explain asset choices, risks, diversification logic, and macro factors. |
| 10% | Drawdown control | Rewards teams that avoid large peak-to-trough portfolio losses. |
Investment thesis
A strong thesis explains why the team chose the assets, what could go wrong, how the portfolio is diversified, and how interest rates, inflation, earnings, or news could affect returns.
