On 3 February 2024, SMU’s Team “ACCT 403” emerged as champions of the National Tax Competition (NTC) 2024, organised by Nanyang Technological University’s Tax Advisory Club. The team consisted of Year 3 undergraduates from the School of Accountancy, Aloysius Kang Wen Tao, Aung Myin Oo, Edwin Ng Kang Shun, Zeng Ruiqi and from the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Yeo Zhi Yu Joel.

NTC 2024 is the 14th edition of the annual competition. This year’s edition saw a total of 35 teams from four universities and three polytechnics competing, with close to 200 participants in total. 

All teams went through a rigorous preliminary round, tackling tax computations and challenging multiple-choice questions surrounding a diverse range of tax issues. Team “ACCT 403” came through as one of the top 4 best performing teams, earning them a spot in the final case challenge round.

The theme of this year’s case challenge was “Carbon tax and carbon credits in the context of Singapore”. Team “ACCT 403” delved into the effectiveness of carbon tax and carbon credits on greenhouse gas emissions and competition in affected industries. The team also provided tax policy recommendations aligned with Singapore’s net zero emission target. Judges, Lee Imm, Tax Director at the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore; Felix Wong, Head of Tax at SCTP, Singapore’s Institute of Accredited Tax Professionals; and Professor Jack Wong, CPA Australia unanimously awarded Team “ACCT 403” the coveted title of champion. In recognition of their outstanding performance, the team received a cash prize of $1,600 and an accelerated application for internships with KPMG.

Reflecting on their experience at the competition, Team “ACCT 403” appreciated the intellectually stimulating topic for this year’s case challenge. As strong advocates for sustainable practices, the team members thoroughly enjoyed researching the topic during preparations. Pooling their knowledge on tax policies to promote sustainable behaviour by corporations and consumers proved fulfilling despite the short time frame available for research. While it was challenging to research the  topic and prepare the slide decks within an hour, the team divided the tasks according to the strengths and research interests of each member to develop a cohesive presentation. Throughout the competition, the team members motivated each other to do their best and reminded one another to enjoy the process.

Team “ACCT 403’ attributes their success to several factors – SMU’s seminar-style learning, which helped them to articulate their ideas effectively; the synergy between teammates who contributed their expertise in complementing domains; and last but not least, Sum Yee Loong, Professor of Accounting, under whom they had studied the Advanced Taxation course. Prof Sum commended the efforts of the team and shared that he is proud to have been a mentor to the students.