An aspiring investment banker is celebrating after winning a prestigious essay-writing competition and securing work experience at a major firm in London.

Elis clinched the overall Cazenove Schroders Economic Prize and fellow Monmouth School for Boys pupil, Jasper, was the runner-up.

The annual competition, organised by the Haberdashers’ Company, attracted entries from students studying A level Economics at the 10 participating schools.

The title of the essay: Will the fall in the pound rebalance the UK economy? was thought-provoking for Sixth Form students Elis and Jasper.

Elis and Jasper were invited to Haberdashers’ Hall for the awards ceremony along with finalists from Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls, Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School and Haberdashers’ Adams School.

Elis, 17, can now look forward to two days’ work experience with Schroders, a British multi-national asset management company which employs over 4,100 people worldwide.

Elis said: “I argued that a devaluation of the pound alone wouldn’t bring about a rebalancing of the UK economy without any structural reform because the UK economy is heavily invested in the service sector.”

Elis is also studying Maths and History at A level and hopes to read Economics at the University of Bath.

“In the long-term, I am thinking about the possibility of doing a masters in the Economics and then going into the financial sector and perhaps into investment banking or a similar area,” said Elis.

“My trip to Haberdashers’ Hall for the ceremony was fantastic. I made new contacts and it was a great experience to meet all the Haberdashers and Bruno Schroder (the great-grandson of John Henry Schroder, the co-founder of Schroders).

“I am looking forward to spending two days in London with Schroders where they will show me what they do.”

Elis was presented with £150 in prize money and won £300 for Monmouth School for Girls, where he is studying Economics at A level. Jasper received £50 as the runner-up.

Jasper, 18, is also studying History and Latin at A level and hopes to read History at the University at Bristol.

He said: “My essay focused on how the service industry wouldn’t particularly benefit after a devaluation of the pound and I also looked more in-depth at the impact on the construction industry.”