9 questions reported in HarbourVest interviews, organised by the group that asks them. Every question carries a model answer and graded feedback on your own attempt.
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NAV discounts, J-curve mitigation, continuation vehicles and pacing. 9 questions
A foundational pricing concept in a secondaries interview.
An LP interest is offered at 85% of NAV. What does that tell you, and what does it not tell you?
A first-round fund-document question at a secondaries investor.
An LP has agreed to sell you an interest in a private equity fund. Why do you need to read the transfer provisions and obtain the GP's consent before treating the purchase as complete?
A basic pricing check in every LP-led case study.
Why do unfunded commitments reduce the price a buyer pays for an LP interest?
A special-situations case common in mature secondaries portfolios.
What makes a tail-end fund interest difficult to underwrite?
The structural argument for the secondaries asset class.
Explain the J-curve. How do secondaries mitigate it, and what does an LP give up in exchange?
A portfolio-risk follow-up in LP-led underwriting.
How does concentration change the way you price a secondary portfolio?
A live-deal update question for a secondaries investment team.
You are underwriting an LP portfolio whose largest asset is marked at 14.0x EBITDA. A new quarterly report shows revenue grew 4% versus the budgeted 12%, EBITDA is 8% below plan, and net debt is $40m…
A portfolio-construction question for secondaries and institutional investor interviews.
How can a secondaries allocation help an LP manage its private markets pacing?
A secondaries case-study prompt that tests whether a candidate discounts cash flows rather than anchoring on NAV.
You can buy an LP interest for $72m. Its reported NAV is $90m, with $10m of unfunded commitments. Your base case assumes $20m of distributions in year one, $35m in year three, and $45m in year five,…
Write your answer, get it graded on technical accuracy, completeness and communication, and see exactly which mechanic you missed.
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