191 questions reported in J.P. Morgan 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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Ratings, spreads, tenor and covenant packages, and pricing a new issue. 20 questions
Green bonds are a growing trend. This tests understanding of ESG in debt markets.
What are green bonds, and how do they differ from conventional bonds in terms of structure and pricing?
The yield curve is fundamental to bond pricing. This tests understanding of rate environment.
How does the yield curve affect bond pricing, and how do you determine the appropriate benchmark for a bond issuance?
An analyst-level arithmetic check used when preparing an issuance summary and sources-and-uses bridge.
A company issues $500 million face amount of 10-year notes at 99.25. Underwriting fees are 35 bps of face amount and legal, rating, and printing costs total $0.60 million. Calculate gross cash…
A core DCM screening calculation used when a banker discusses preliminary pricing with an investment-grade issuer.
A BBB-rated industrial company plans to issue a new five-year USD senior unsecured bond. The on-the-run five-year Treasury yields 3.80%, and comparable bonds indicate the new issue should price at…
A first-round DCM question that checks whether a candidate can turn investor language into an issuer-cost discussion.
An investor says a proposed bond needs a new-issue concession. What does that mean, why might an issuer pay one, and why is the concession not simply a fee paid to the banks?
The foundational DCM question. Understanding the process is essential for the role.
Walk me through the process of a corporate bond issuance. What are the key steps and who are the key participants?
A DCM associate asks for a recommendation before a client call on how to finance a near-term acquisition.
A BBB consumer company needs $600 million for an acquisition closing in two weeks. It has $400 million of floating-rate revolver debt, stable dollar cash flows, and no near-term maturities. The DCM…
Digital bonds are an emerging trend. This tests understanding of blockchain in capital markets.
What are digital bonds, and how does the issuance process differ from traditional bond issuances?
Municipal bonds have unique tax treatment. This tests understanding of the muni market.
What are the key differences between municipal and corporate bonds, and how does tax treatment affect pricing?
The core mechanic of a debt capital markets desk.
An investment grade issuer wants to raise $750m of 10-year notes. Walk me through how you arrive at the coupon.
Bond structuring is core to DCM. This tests understanding of debt terms and investor preferences.
What are the key decisions in structuring a bond issuance, and how do you balance issuer needs with investor preferences?
Syndication is how debt is distributed. This tests understanding of the sales process.
Explain the syndication process for a bond issuance. How do you determine the syndicate structure and allocate bonds?
High yield is a distinct market with different dynamics. This tests understanding of the segment.
What are the key differences between the high yield and investment grade bond markets, and how does this affect issuance strategy?
Tests whether you understand that the two markets are structurally different, not just differently priced.
How does issuing high yield differ from issuing investment grade. Beyond the fact that the coupon is higher?
Credit spreads are the core pricing metric. This tests understanding of credit risk.
What factors determine credit spreads for corporate bonds, and how do you assess whether current spreads are appropriate?
A DCM superday case tests whether you can turn a maturity schedule into an actionable financing recommendation rather than merely reciting current spreads.
A BBB- issuer has $1.2bn of notes maturing in 18 months and $900m maturing 30 months from now. It has $400m of cash, a $750m undrawn revolver, and forecast annual free cash flow of $250m before debt…
A live DCM execution judgement test: the desk needs a pricing recommendation, not a description of book-building.
A BBB+ issuer is marketing $1.0 billion of 10-year notes at initial price thoughts of Treasury +165 to +170 bps. Two hours later, the book shows $4.0 billion of demand. However, one hedge fund…
ABS is a specialized market. This tests understanding of securitization.
Explain the structure of asset-backed securities, and how do they differ from corporate bonds?
Convertibles bridge debt and equity. This tests understanding of hybrid securities.
Explain the structure and economics of convertible bonds. When are they appropriate for issuers, and how do you value them?
Emerging market debt has unique risks. This tests understanding of sovereign risk.
What are the key differences between emerging market and developed market corporate bonds, and how do you assess sovereign risk?
Credit statistics, capacity analysis, flex terms and syndication risk. 19 questions
A quick sizing exercise for leveraged finance screens.
A company has $80m of EBITDA. The market can support 4.0x secured debt and 5.5x total debt. How much secured and unsecured debt can it raise?
Levfin desks ask this because leverage depends on adjusted EBITDA, not just reported EBITDA.
What are EBITDA addbacks, and why do lenders care so much about them?
A standard product comparison in leveraged finance interviews.
Compare a leveraged loan with a high-yield bond.
A mechanics question for acquisition financings.
What goes into sources and uses for a sponsor acquisition financing?
A first-round product question for analysts staffing an acquisition financing.
Compare a Term Loan A with a Term Loan B. Why would a sponsor-backed borrower use both?
A basic fit question for leveraged finance analyst interviews.
What does a leveraged finance group do, and how is it different from debt capital markets?
Acquisition financings often rely on bridge commitments before permanent debt is placed.
What is a bridge loan in leveraged finance?
A staffer asks an analyst to prepare a lender presentation after a sponsor announces an acquisition.
You are preparing the first lender presentation for a sponsor-backed acquisition. What do you need to validate before marketing the financing, and what would you put in the materials?
Asked to test whether candidates understand investor reinvestment risk.
What is call protection and why do debt investors care about it?
A key documentation concept in the institutional loan market.
What does covenant-lite mean, and why do investors accept it?
A common follow-up to leverage sizing.
A company has $100m EBITDA and $500m debt priced at 10% cash interest. What is interest coverage, and is it comfortable?
A process question on how committed financing becomes distributed risk.
Walk me through the leveraged loan syndication process.
A leveraged loan pricing question.
A loan has a 9% coupon and is issued at 96 OID. Why does the OID matter to investors?
A leveraged-finance analyst must turn scattered sponsor and lender comments into an actionable underwriting response before syndication.
At 6:45am, the lead underwriter asks for a response before the financing launch call. The sponsor wants leverage unchanged despite weaker trading. Prioritise each reply and prepare a concise…
The question a leveraged finance desk answers before committing capital.
A sponsor asks you to underwrite the debt for a buyout of a business with $150m EBITDA. How do you determine how much debt it can carry, and what would make you say no?
A harder levfin question on where underwriting losses actually come from.
A bank commits to a $2bn leveraged financing. Markets sell off and investors only want the debt at 90. What happens?
A leveraged-finance analyst review before an underwriting committee discussion.
A first-year analyst has prepared the debt-sizing case for a sponsor acquisition of a packaging distributor. Find the errors that change debt capacity or returns, protect the underwriting timeline,…
A leveraged-finance underwriting case where sponsor-friendly documentation changes the lender's exit protection.
A sponsor asks for debt that can remain outstanding after a change of control if leverage is below a portability threshold. What must the underwriting team test before accepting the request?
A sponsor asks the bank to finance a dividend recap eighteen months after closing.
A sponsor-owned company has reduced debt from $600m to $480m while EBITDA rose from $100m to $120m. The sponsor wants $180m of new debt to fund a dividend. Would you recommend underwriting it?
Pipeline risk-adjusted valuation, reimbursement and patent cliffs. 17 questions
CROs are essential to pharma R&D. This tests understanding of the healthcare services ecosystem.
Explain the business model of a contract research organisation (CRO). How do they generate revenue, and what drives demand for their services?
Generics have different economics than branded pharma. This tests understanding of the value chain.
Explain the generic drug business model. How does it differ from branded pharmaceuticals, and what drives profitability?
Healthcare real estate is a growing asset class. This tests understanding of the property side of healthcare.
Explain the business model of a healthcare REIT. How do they generate revenue, and what are the key risks?
Healthcare services (hospitals, insurers, PBM) have different economics than medtech/pharma. This tests breadth.
Explain the business model of a hospital company. How do they generate revenue, and what are the key cost drivers?
Medical devices have different economics than pharma. This tests understanding of the subsector.
Explain the business model of a medical device company. How does it differ from pharmaceuticals, and what are the key value drivers?
Reimbursement determines whether healthcare products get paid for. Fundamental to understanding the sector.
Explain how reimbursement works for pharmaceuticals and medical devices. What are the key payers and how do they decide what to cover?
Healthcare coverage teams use this as a foundational test of how payment incentives can reshape an otherwise stable revenue pool.
What is a site-of-care shift in healthcare, and why can it matter to the revenue and valuation of providers, payers and medical-device companies?
The patent cliff is the single most important concept in pharma valuation. Every healthcare interview covers it.
Explain the patent cliff for pharmaceutical companies. Why does it matter, and how do companies manage the risk?
Healthcare coverage teams use this to test whether you can distinguish a real operating improvement from acquired growth.
A physician-services company reports 12% revenue growth, including 8% from acquisitions. How would you assess the quality and value of the remaining 4% same-store growth?
Managed care has unique economics. This tests understanding of the insurance side of healthcare.
Explain the business model of a health insurance company. How do they generate profit, and what are the key risk factors?
Digital health is a growing subsector with unique economics. This tests understanding of new business models.
Digital health companies (telehealth, health IT, digital therapeutics) have different economics than traditional healthcare. How do you value them, and what metrics matter?
Regulatory risk is omnipresent in healthcare. This tests understanding of the political/legal landscape.
What are the major sources of regulatory risk in healthcare, and how do they differ across subsectors? How do you model this risk in valuation?
A managed-care earnings review tests whether you can turn a headline medical-cost ratio into a clean operating-profit bridge.
A Medicare Advantage insurer reports $1,000m of premium revenue, $840m of medical claims and $80m of administrative expense. Calculate its medical cost ratio and operating profit. If claims rise by…
Pricing power is the core pharma investment thesis. This tests understanding of the market dynamics.
What factors determine whether a pharmaceutical company can charge high prices for a drug? Why do some drugs have strong pricing power while others don't?
R&D productivity is the core pharma investment thesis. This tests understanding of industry challenges.
Pharma companies spend more on R&D but approve fewer drugs per dollar spent. Why is R&D productivity declining, and what are companies doing about it?
Healthcare coverage teams use this to test whether you can identify the recurring economics embedded in a capital-equipment franchise.
A surgical-robotics company grows procedure revenue 18%, capital-equipment revenue 2%, and its installed base 10%. Management argues that the slowing equipment line is positive because the business is…
Healthcare M&A has unique strategic drivers. This tests understanding of sector dynamics.
What are the primary strategic reasons for M&A in healthcare, and how do they differ across subsectors (pharma, medtech, services)?
Capital structure, covenant headroom, FX and interest rate hedging. 16 questions
A foundational treasury interview question because weekly liquidity is managed through a short-term forecast.
Walk me through how you would build a 13-week cash forecast for a company with seasonal sales. What makes it useful rather than merely accurate-looking?
Treasury teams must protect operating cash and derivative collateral from a bank failure.
Your company holds substantial deposits and derivatives with several banks. How would you manage bank counterparty risk?
Corporate treasury interviews use this to distinguish cheap funding from dependable liquidity.
What is commercial paper, and when should a company use it rather than a revolver or long-term debt?
A common first-round treasury question because account sprawl creates cost, fraud and visibility problems before it creates a funding problem.
A multinational has 480 bank accounts across 18 banks, many with small dormant balances. Why would treasury rationalise the structure, and how would you do it without disrupting the business?
Tests whether a candidate sees refinancing as a portfolio-risk problem rather than just a cost-of-debt question.
A company has $3bn of bonds all maturing in the same year. Why is that risky, and how would you redesign its maturity profile?
The core treasury question, and it has no single right answer.
A company has $3bn of revenue and holds $800m of cash. Is that too much? How would you determine the right level?
A numerical treasury follow-up that tests whether a candidate hedges the economic net exposure rather than gross invoices.
A US parent expects to collect €12m from customers and pay €9m to suppliers in 90 days. The EUR/USD forward rate is 1.1000 dollars per euro. What is the net exposure, what forward should it enter, and…
A corporate treasury inbox escalation requiring prioritisation of cash, funding, and stakeholder actions.
You are the treasury analyst for an acquisitive public company after a delayed receivables cycle and an upcoming debt maturity tighten liquidity. Rank the actions as new information arrives, then send…
A recurring treasury committee decision.
A company has $2bn of floating rate debt. What proportion should be fixed, and how do you decide?
Tests whether a treasury candidate prioritises capital preservation and access over a marginal yield pickup.
Your company has $400m of surplus cash that it does not expect to need for nine months. How would you set the short-term investment policy?
A scenario question that tests liquidity judgement under a deteriorating market backdrop.
Your company has $150m of cash and a $500m undrawn revolver. Debt markets are becoming volatile, but you have no immediate maturity. Should you draw the revolver now?
A standard numerical follow-up after discussing transaction exposure.
A US company must pay €10m in three months. The three-month EUR/USD forward rate is 1.0800 dollars per euro. How would you hedge it, what dollar cost do you lock, and what happens if spot settles at…
A treasury case question that tests funding execution, rating protection and contingency planning at once.
Your company is signing a $2bn cash acquisition that closes in six months. How would you build the treasury funding plan before announcement?
Treasury interviews test whether you understand the rating as a constraint on strategy.
Your company is rated BBB and a proposed acquisition would push you to BBB−. Does it matter? What would you do?
Senior treasury interviews use this to test whether the candidate can turn a macro shock into concrete financing actions.
How would you stress test a company's liquidity, and what actions would you take if the downside case shows a shortfall in nine months?
A senior treasury judgement question on turning a large reported cash balance into usable capital without ignoring legal-entity constraints.
A group reports $1.0bn of cash, but $600m sits in foreign subsidiaries. The parent has a $250m maturity in eight months and is considering a share repurchase. How would you determine how much cash is…
Regulatory capital, ROTE against cost of equity, and why EV is meaningless. 15 questions
The foundational asset management question. Fee-based business models are different from banking.
Explain the asset management business model. How do they generate revenue, and what are the key drivers of profitability?
The foundational FIG question. Every banking interview starts with the business model.
Walk me through how a commercial bank generates profit. What are the main revenue streams and cost drivers?
Fintech is disrupting FIG. This tests understanding of the competitive landscape.
What are the key differences between fintech companies and traditional banks? How do their business models and economics compare?
A first-round FIG interviewer uses this to see whether you understand why deposits matter beyond their reported balance.
A regional bank says it has $50 billion of deposits. What makes those deposits valuable, and what would make you discount that headline number?
Asset management M&A is driven by scale and distribution. This tests understanding of industry dynamics.
What are the key considerations when acquiring an asset manager? How do you value a business that's essentially people and reputation?
CECL/IFRS 9 changed how banks reserve for losses. This tests understanding of current accounting.
Explain how banks calculate loan loss provisions under CECL. How does this differ from the old incurred loss model, and why does it matter for earnings volatility?
The core FIG valuation question. EV/EBITDA doesn't work for financials.
Why doesn't EV/EBITDA work for banks, and what metrics do you use instead?
Asset management valuation is different from banking. This tests understanding of fee-based models.
What metrics do you use to value an asset manager, and why is P/E more relevant than P/TBV?
A FIG associate gives this as a short earnings-model check before asking for the credit-cycle implication.
A bank reports $2,400m of net interest income, $900m of fee income, $1,850m of non-interest expense, $420m of provision for credit losses, and $180m of tax expense. Calculate pre-provision net revenue…
Post-2008, capital ratios are the first thing FIG analysts discuss. This tests regulatory knowledge.
Explain the key capital ratios that banks must maintain under Basel III. Why do they matter for valuation?
A FIG superday case tests whether you can connect a bank's securities mark to its ability to pay for an acquisition.
A bank has $100bn of risk-weighted assets and $11bn of CET1 capital, so its CET1 ratio is 11.0%. It holds $20bn of available-for-sale securities with a $2bn unrealised loss in accumulated other…
Bank M&A has unique considerations. This tests sector-specific deal knowledge.
What are the key considerations when valuing a bank acquisition? How does it differ from valuing a non-financial company acquisition?
Rate sensitivity is the single most important factor for bank earnings. This tests quantitative understanding.
A bank has $100 billion in interest-earning assets with an average yield of 5% and $80 billion in interest-bearing liabilities with an average cost of 2%. What happens to net interest income if rates…
A FIG case uses reserve development to test whether you can distinguish a one-time accounting charge from a signal about underwriting quality and capital capacity.
A P&C insurer reports a 5-point adverse prior-year reserve development charge, taking its combined ratio from 96% to 101%. Management calls the charge isolated and maintains its buyback plan. How…
FIG coverage interviews test whether you can value a business where debt is inventory.
Why do some banks trade above tangible book value and others below? Give me the relationship, and explain what a bank can actually do about it.
Carry, curve shape, storage economics and policy sensitivity. 12 questions
A basic client-coverage question that tests whether you match an instrument to a real exposure.
Distinguish an FX spot trade, forward and option. Give one sensible use case for each.
Sales and trading interviews use a client order to test quote direction, execution and risk awareness.
A dealer quotes USD/JPY at 149.80 / 149.84. A client wants to buy $20m against yen immediately. At what rate do you trade, and what risk does the dealer have after filling the order?
An FX desk uses this first-round check to see whether you can speak precisely about a market quote.
EUR/USD moves from 1.0800 to 1.0950. Which currency strengthened, by how much, and how would you explain the move to a US importer?
Commodities interviews ask this to test whether you distinguish gold from industrial raw materials.
What are the main drivers of gold, and why is it misleading to analyse it like copper or oil?
An FX operations-aware first round checks whether a candidate understands that execution is not complete when a trade is agreed.
A bank sells €25m for dollars to a counterparty for value tomorrow. What is FX settlement risk, and how does payment-versus-payment settlement reduce it?
The client conversation an FX sales desk has daily.
A US corporate expects €100m of revenue over the next year. Walk me through the hedging options and what you'd recommend.
An FX-options interview uses this to test whether you understand how option risk becomes spot risk on a dealer book.
A dealer sells a client a EUR/USD call with a delta of 0.40 on €10m notional. How should the dealer initially hedge the spot exposure, and what changes if EUR/USD rises?
The foundational calculation on any FX desk.
EUR/USD spot is 1.0800. US rates are 4%, euro rates 2%, both for one year. What is the one-year forward, and why can't it be anything else?
A commodities sales interview tests whether you can reconcile a client's physical cost with a liquid but imperfect futures hedge.
An airline expects to buy 1m gallons of jet fuel in three months. Jet fuel is $2.20 per gallon, so it buys 20 heating-oil futures contracts, each covering 42,000 gallons, at $2.10 per gallon. At…
Macro and FX interviews use carry unwinds to test whether you can describe risk, not just a yield differential.
You are long a high-yielding emerging-market currency funded in Japanese yen. The central bank unexpectedly signals tighter Japanese policy and global equities fall sharply. What happens to the trade,…
An FX structuring discussion after a client finds that its hedge economics diverged from its USD funding exposure.
A European company funds a US acquisition with USD debt and uses EUR/USD cross-currency swaps to hedge interest and principal. EUR/USD spot moves in its favour, yet the reported hedge mark-to-market…
An FX-options desk asks this when assessing whether a candidate can turn volatility-market information into a disciplined client recommendation.
USD/BRL spot is stable, but three-month USD/BRL implied volatility rises from 12% to 18% and USD calls trade at a much higher implied volatility than equivalent USD puts. A US importer must pay BRL…
Merger models, accretion/dilution, purchase accounting and deal judgement. 11 questions
A standard three-statement variation once you've handled depreciation.
A company repurchases $100 of its own stock using cash on hand. Walk me through the three statements. Then tell me what changes if it funds the buyback with debt at a 5% interest rate.
Foundational screen. Expect it early in a first round.
Explain the difference between accrual and cash accounting, and why public companies report on an accrual basis. Give an example where the two diverge materially.
A quick screen on whether you actually understand accrual mechanics.
Explain the difference between a prepaid expense and an accrued liability. Give an example of each and the cash flow effect.
A quick warm-up before harder statement questions.
Walk me through the three statements when a company raises $100 of debt at 6%. Then do the same for $100 of equity. Assume a 25% tax rate and that the cash is held, not spent.
The single most commonly asked question in investment banking analyst interviews.
Explain how the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement connect. Assume the interviewer wants the full linkage, not just a description of each statement in isolation.
Screening question across banking, corporate finance and credit interviews.
Define working capital and net working capital. What does an increase in net working capital do to cash flow, and what does a negative working capital balance tell you about a business?
The immediate follow-up to the EV vs. equity value question.
Why is cash subtracted when calculating enterprise value? Is all cash treated the same way?
Expect this as a rapid mental-math question with no calculator.
Company A trades at 20x P/E and acquires Company B at 15x P/E in an all-stock deal, with no synergies. Is the deal accretive or dilutive? Explain the rule and its limits.
The interviewer is checking whether you understand what your DCF actually values.
Define unlevered and levered free cash flow. Which do you use in a DCF, what discount rate pairs with each, and what does each produce?
Essential for FIG groups; also a common curveball in generalist interviews.
Why can't you value a bank with a standard DCF and EV/EBITDA? Walk me through how you would value one instead.
Asked in cross-border M&A and emerging markets coverage.
How do you adjust a DCF for a company operating in an emerging market? Where does the country risk go?
Duration, curve trades, auctions, basis and central bank reaction. 11 questions
A first-round rates-desk question testing whether a candidate can turn a curve screen into a clear market description.
The two-year Treasury yield is 4.10% and the ten-year Treasury yield is 4.45%. Is the curve inverted or upward sloping? Calculate the 2s10s slope, and explain one reason a trader cares about its…
A practical rates-interview prompt on how traders read the market's central-bank expectations.
What is an overnight indexed swap (OIS), and why does a rates trader use it to discuss expected central-bank policy?
A first-round rates-desk check that makes sure a candidate can follow a live market conversation.
A trader says, "10-year Treasury yields are up 7bp to 4.32%." What does that mean in percentage terms, and why do rates desks speak in basis points rather than percentages?
A rates-desk scenario lab testing DV01 arithmetic, limit discipline and trade expression after a macro surprise.
You are covering a Treasury book after a hot CPI print. Size the rate-risk exposure, test it against the desk limit, and recommend how to preserve the trade thesis without relying on a hope-driven…
A desk-style risk question testing whether a candidate sizes a hedge by rate sensitivity instead of by headline notional.
A client buys a Treasury portfolio with a DV01 of +$175,100: it gains $175,100 if yields fall 1bp and loses the same amount if they rise 1bp. A Treasury futures contract has a DV01 of +$85 when you…
Macro reasoning question for rates desks and macro funds.
The central bank raises rates by 100bps. Walk me through the transmission channels to the real economy and the likely reaction across asset classes.
The plumbing of every rates desk, and the market that breaks first in a crisis.
Explain a repurchase agreement. Who uses it and why, and what does it mean when a bond goes "special"?
Core product knowledge for any rates or corporate derivatives desk.
Explain an interest rate swap. A corporate has floating rate debt and wants fixed. What do they do, and what is a swap spread?
A staple opener in sales & trading and macro interviews.
Explain what the yield curve is and what an inversion means. Why has inversion historically preceded recessions, and what are the limits of that signal?
A rates-desk market replay testing reaction function, positioning and risk expression.
You are on a US rates desk into CPI. Commit to a trade as the release and market colour arrive. You will see the reaction only after making each decision.
A rates relative-value interview case testing whether a candidate can see financing and delivery optionality, not just a screen spread.
A desk sees a deliverable Treasury trading rich to its futures-implied price and proposes buying the future's cash-and-carry: buy the bond, finance it in repo, and short the futures. The apparent…
Stochastic calculus, VaR and expected shortfall, and model limitations. 10 questions
Risk analysts are routinely asked to translate a rate sensitivity into an approximate P&L.
A bond portfolio has a DV01 of $85,000. What does that mean, and what is the approximate P&L if yields rise by 12 basis points? What would you check before relying on the answer?
Market-risk teams use this first-round question to test whether candidates understand the loss tail rather than only a headline metric.
What is expected shortfall, and why might a risk team use it alongside a 99% VaR?
A first-round risk interview checks that you can distinguish the core risk types before discussing models.
What is market risk? Give examples for an equity, bond and FX position, and explain how a risk team makes the definition useful in practice.
Credit-risk teams use this to test whether candidates look beyond default as the only adverse outcome.
Why does a corporate bond investor care about credit migration if the issuer never defaults? Walk through the risk of a BBB bond being downgraded to BB.
Model validation teams ask this to test whether candidates understand governance as well as mathematics.
What is model risk? You inherit a pricing and risk model used to set limits. How would you decide whether it is fit for use?
A market-risk interview often tests whether you can diagnose a model exception without overreacting to one data point.
A desk's 99% one-day VaR is breached six times over 250 trading days. How do you interpret that result and investigate it?
Senior quant-risk interviews test whether you can balance a plausible model improvement against control risk and commercial pressure.
A quant team wants to deploy a new equity factor-risk model on Thursday, before a major central-bank decision. It lowers measured risk for a profitable book by 20% because it treats recent sector…
A market-risk interview for a portfolio whose normal-day VaR understates gap and volatility risk.
A portfolio is short index puts and long a smaller number of single-stock puts. Its one-day VaR is stable, but the risk manager is worried about a sharp equity sell-off. What would you test beyond…
Senior risk interviews assess whether a candidate can connect portfolio metrics to governance and escalation.
How would you turn a firm's broad risk appetite statement into useful desk-level limits? What makes a limit framework effective?
Core to risk management interviews at banks and funds.
Define Value at Risk. What are its weaknesses as a risk measure, and what would you use alongside or instead of it?
Spread decomposition, liquidity, index arbitrage and dealer inventory. 9 questions
A sales-and-trading screen tests whether a candidate understands the cash amount a bond buyer actually pays at settlement.
A corporate bond is quoted at a clean price of 98.40. It has accrued interest of 1.10 points per 100 of par. What price does the buyer pay, and why do traders quote the clean rather than dirty price?
A first-round credit trading screen checks that candidates can interpret a bond quote before discussing a credit view.
A bond has a fixed 5% coupon. Its market price falls from 100 to 95. Does its yield rise or fall, and why?
New-issue pricing is a practical test of how a credit trader distinguishes valuation from primary-market technicals.
An issuer's outstanding five-year bonds trade at Treasury + 180bp. It launches a new five-year bond at Treasury + 205bp. Is the 25bp difference attractive, and what would you check before buying?
A credit trading interview uses this scenario to test trade expression, financing and basis risk rather than a generic CDS definition.
You expect a leveraged retailer's credit to weaken before earnings. Its five-year cash bond trades at 94 with a 7.0% coupon, while five-year CDS trades at 520bp. Should you short the bond or buy CDS…
This tests practical market judgement: preserving information and execution quality matter as much as the directional view.
A portfolio manager needs to sell $40 million face value of a corporate bond that normally trades only $5 million clips. How would you execute without unnecessarily moving the market?
The two halves of the leveraged credit market behave differently, and desks trade both.
Compare leveraged loans and high yield bonds as investments. Which would you rather own if you expect rates to fall?
The structural fact that shapes every credit trading desk.
A single company might have twenty bonds outstanding while it has one common share. What does that do to liquidity, and how has the market adapted?
A credit-trading desk replay after an issuer misses earnings and the market reprices its bonds.
You cover credit trading for a consumer-products issuer reporting before the open. Make a decision at each stage, then leave a concise trading note for the desk head.
A credit-trading desk simulation testing trade expression, liquidity discipline and client communication after a fast market move.
You are a credit-trading analyst supporting a desk that holds a large cash-bond inventory after a disappointing earnings release. Use the market updates to prepare a risk note for the desk head and…
IPO process and pricing, dilution, lock-ups, greenshoe and market windows. 9 questions
ECM analysts are expected to form a practical view on whether a client can launch.
A client asks whether it should launch an equity offering this week. What would you check before advising that the equity window is open?
The opening technical in any equity capital markets interview.
Walk me through the IPO process from the decision to go public through to the first day of trading.
A first-round ECM question testing whether you can match a financing tool to a public company's needs.
What is an at-the-market, or ATM, equity offering? Why might a public company use one instead of a single marketed follow-on?
Tests basic IPO aftermarket knowledge in a first-round product interview.
What is an IPO lock-up, why is it used, and what can happen when it expires?
An ECM process simulation testing sequencing, dependencies and market-window judgement.
You are coordinating an IPO across the issuer, lawyers, auditors and syndicate. Put the work in executable order as diligence issues and a volatile market window threaten the launch.
ECM teams use this judgement question to test how banking and sales coordinate before execution.
What is investor education before an IPO, and how is it different from the formal roadshow?
An ECM analyst simulation in which investor feedback and market volatility force a fresh launch recommendation.
You are staffing an IPO launch for a sponsor-backed industrial technology company. The syndicate desk needs a recommendation after early-look feedback, an earnings update and a sharp move in the…
An ECM process question on a confidential seller block after the stock has become volatile.
A major shareholder wants to sell a confidential block tonight. How would you manage wall-crossing, allocation and launch risk when demand may be thin?
An ECM analyst process case coordinating a marketed follow-on while disclosure and market conditions move.
You are the ECM analyst coordinating a marketed follow-on for a software issuer. The CFO wants to launch before an industry conference, but diligence and the market tape keep changing. Sequence each…
Greeks, skew, hedging costs and payoff construction. 8 questions
A first-round options screen for candidates who have not yet traded derivatives.
A client buys one call option and one put option, each on the same stock with a strike price of $100. Explain what each contract gives the buyer, who has the obligation, and what happens at expiry if…
A sales-and-trading first round checks whether a candidate can convert a foreign-currency liability into the client's functional currency.
A US company issues a five-year EUR 100m bond because euro funding is attractive, but it earns almost all of its cash flow in US dollars. Explain how a cross-currency swap can change the company's…
A common sales and trading screen testing whether you can connect a derivative to a corporate financing problem.
A company has $100m of floating-rate debt paying SOFR plus 2%. It fears rates will rise. Explain the simplest interest-rate swap it could enter, what cash flows it would exchange, and what risk…
A desk arithmetic test after a candidate proposes a cap as protection for floating-rate debt.
A borrower has $50m of 90-day SOFR debt paying SOFR plus 1.80%. It buys a cap on $50m with a 4.00% strike for the same 90-day period. If realised SOFR fixes at 5.20%, calculate the cap payment and the…
A client-structuring case tests whether you match derivative certainty to uncertain operating volumes instead of simply maximising the hedge ratio.
An airline expects to consume 10m gallons of jet fuel next quarter, but bookings are volatile and management believes actual consumption could range from 7m to 10m gallons. Fuel costs are a major…
A structuring-superday judgement question: explain a popular product's economics without hiding its tail risk.
A client asks for a one-year autocall linked to a volatile technology stock: it pays a 14% coupon if the stock is at or above its initial level on each monthly observation date, redeems early if that…
A structuring-superday case on whether a high coupon is compensation for a risk the client has not identified.
A client can buy either a one-year 10% coupon note linked to one technology stock or a 16% coupon note with otherwise similar terms linked to the worst performer of three technology stocks. In both…
A cross-product structuring case used to test whether a candidate can explain an equity derivative, accounting-sensitive client objective, and dealer hedge in one answer.
A company wants to spend $500m repurchasing stock but wants most shares delivered immediately, before a two-month execution period ends. A bank proposes an accelerated share repurchase (ASR) priced…
Driver-based models, differentiated estimates and defending a rating. 8 questions
A first-round question that tests whether candidates understand the job beyond building a model.
Walk me through the job of a sell-side equity research analyst. Who are the clients, what are the core outputs, and what makes the role useful?
Tests whether an associate can turn a live model into a useful pre-results client note.
Your covered company reports in two weeks. How would you prepare an earnings preview that clients can use, rather than a generic summary of the last quarter?
A sell-side research output simulation prioritising what clients need immediately after earnings.
A covered software company reports a revenue beat, an EPS beat and lower full-year margin guidance. Produce the first client flash after validating the moving pieces.
Tests practical judgement on management access, material non-public information and research independence.
You arrange a management meeting for clients. During preparation, an executive starts to indicate that the upcoming quarter will miss guidance. What do you do, and how do you preserve the value of…
A client-facing research exercise that tests whether a candidate can turn an event list into a falsifiable expectation and tradeable risk-reward framework.
A stock is down 18% year-to-date. Over the next four months it has an investor day, a product launch, quarterly earnings, and a regulatory decision. Consensus expects 5% revenue growth, while your…
A senior-style judgement test for associates who must defend a published view through volatile results and client challenge.
Your sector team is considering upgrading a stock after a 25% decline. Consensus has already fallen, management credibility is weak, and the valuation looks cheap on your model. How would you decide…
A sell-side research associate review between an earnings call and a client-facing results flash.
Your analyst asks you to review the model and draft flash on a software company that has just reported. Identify the hidden errors that could mislead clients, prioritise the repairs, and write the…
A post-results modelling case testing whether an associate can separate a superficially in-line quarter from a changed earnings algorithm.
Your covered company reports EPS exactly in line with consensus. Segment A revenue grows 12% versus your 8% forecast, but Segment B revenue falls 6% versus your expected flat result. Consolidated EBIT…
Cyclicality, operating leverage, backlog quality and mid-cycle earnings. 5 questions
Asked because backlog can be a real asset or a misleading headline number.
An industrial company says it has record backlog. What do you ask next?
A first-round industrials coverage question when evaluating whether equipment shipments can create durable service revenue.
A manufacturer has 10,000 machines in service. It sells annual maintenance contracts to 6,500 customers at $4,000 each. Define service attach rate, calculate it here, and explain why an analyst would…
Asked because industrials can burn cash while reported earnings improve.
Why can a manufacturing company burn cash during a revenue recovery?
A harder scenario question connecting supply chain, pricing and margin.
A 15% tariff is imposed on a key imported component. How do you assess the impact on an industrial company?
A coverage-team diligence question after an industrial equipment issuer discloses a potential safety defect shortly before earnings.
A manufacturer of lifting equipment identifies a possible defect in 40,000 units. Management estimates a $30m warranty reserve, but it has not determined the repair rate, customer downtime cost or…
Market impact, liquidity provision, borrow and event flow. 5 questions
A first-round equities question that checks whether a candidate understands the basic choice a client makes before trading.
A stock is quoted at $49.90 bid and $50.10 offer. Explain the difference between a market order and a limit order. Which would you use to buy 5,000 shares now, and which would you use if you refuse to…
A practical execution calculation for an equities-sales-and-trading first round.
A client asks you to sell 30,000 shares versus VWAP. You execute 10,000 at $24.80, 12,000 at $24.70 and 8,000 at $24.60. The market VWAP is $24.68. What is your execution VWAP and did you outperform…
A desk case that tests how a candidate turns client flow into inventory, liquidity and hedging decisions.
A client wants to sell 2 million shares of a liquid $50 stock. Average daily volume is 10 million shares, and the stock is currently $49.95 / $50.05. What would you assess before quoting a block…
An international-equities case that tests whether a candidate can reconcile equivalent listings before calling a price discrepancy an arbitrage.
One ADR represents two ordinary shares. The ordinary shares trade at €30 each, EUR/USD is 1.10, and the ADR trades at $63.00. Is the ADR rich or cheap on a simple parity basis? What must you check…
An equities-trading case that separates a fundamental short thesis from the securities-finance and execution constraints needed to express it.
A portfolio manager wants to short $20m of a $40 stock ahead of earnings. The stock trades 3m shares per day, reported short interest is 25% of float, and securities finance quotes a 12% annual borrow…
Project selection, returning capital and measuring per-share value. 4 questions
Standard in corporate finance and equity research interviews.
A board wants to return $1bn to shareholders. Compare a buyback with a special dividend. Which would you recommend and what determines the answer?
Foundational capital budgeting question across corporate finance interviews.
Two mutually exclusive projects: Project A has an NPV of $10m and an IRR of 15%. Project B has an NPV of $8m and an IRR of 25%. Which do you choose, and why do the two metrics disagree?
A practical treasury and FP&A question with a clear quantitative component.
A company with $2bn of revenue and $1.4bn of COGS has DSO of 65 days, DIO of 90 days and DPO of 40 days. Calculate the cash conversion cycle, quantify the cash released by improving DSO to 50 days,…
Core to treasury, corporate development and strategic finance interviews.
You're the treasurer of a mid-cap company currently at 1.0x net debt / EBITDA. The CFO asks whether you should lever up to 3.0x and buy back stock. How would you analyse this, and what would you…
Strategic fit, synergy underwriting, dis-synergies and post-close ownership. 3 questions
Tests whether a corporate development analyst can reconcile headline consideration to the cash actually paid at closing.
A signed deal uses a $30m net-working-capital peg. At closing, accounts receivable are $18m, inventory is $11m, and accounts payable plus accrued operating expenses are $7m. Cash and debt are…
A practical first-round question for candidates who may support early-stage deal execution.
What is a letter of intent in an acquisition, and what key points would you expect it to cover?
Asked in regulated-industry corp dev interviews to test awareness of conduct risk during the gap between signing and closing.
Why might an acquirer use a clean team between signing and closing? What information can it analyse, and what must the buyer avoid doing before close?
Recurring revenue quality, Rule of 40, retention and growth-adjusted multiples. 2 questions
Technology coverage analysts regularly reconcile operating KPIs to reported growth before discussing a software issuer with investors.
A SaaS company begins the year with $100m of ARR. Existing customers expand by $12m, contraction is $4m, churn is $6m, and new customers add $18m. Calculate ending ARR, net revenue retention, gross…
Technology coverage interviewers use this to test whether a candidate can turn a bookings headline into a defensible revenue forecast.
A SaaS company reports 30% growth in total RPO, but only 12% growth in current RPO. Billings are flat, reported ARR grows 18%, and management points to several large three-year contracts signed late…
Reserve-based valuation, commodity decks, contracted cash flows and PPAs. 2 questions
Asked in power-coverage interviews to test why dispatchable generation can earn value even when it runs infrequently.
Explain the difference between energy-market revenue and capacity-market revenue for a gas-fired power plant. Why can a plant that runs only during peak hours still be economically valuable?
An upstream coverage case tests whether you can connect commodity hedges to liquidity and valuation without valuing a temporary mark as a permanent asset.
An E&P company has 2027 production of 10 million barrels. It has hedged 60% of that volume with swaps at $75 per barrel. Your base oil deck is $65, while the spot market is $80. How should the hedge…
Business quality, position sizing, benchmark risk and turnover discipline. 1 question
A basic calculation and interpretation check in equity research and portfolio-management screens.
You buy a share at $100. One year later it is $108 and it paid a $3 dividend. The company’s EPS rose from $5.00 to $5.40. Decompose the shareholder return and explain what you would investigate next.
Driver-based forecasts, variance analysis and forecast accuracy. 1 question
FP&A cases often test whether a candidate can connect an operating miss to liquidity before it becomes urgent.
A company has $30m of cash and forecasts $3m of monthly burn. A downside case could increase burn to $5m after three months. How would you build and use the scenario?
Development spreads, cost overruns, lease-up risk and construction draws. 1 question
Tests practical knowledge of how development debt funds over time.
How does a construction loan fund, and why is interest reserve important?
Liquidity runway, fulcrum security, Chapter 11 mechanics and recoveries. 1 question
A practical liquidity-reconciliation question for a restructuring analyst reviewing an asset-based revolver.
A retailer has $80m of eligible receivables at an 85% advance rate and $50m of eligible inventory at a 60% advance rate. Its revolver commitment is $90m, outstanding borrowings are $78m and letters of…
Same-store sales, unit economics, brand durability and channel shift. 1 question
Consumer coverage interviewers use this to test whether a candidate can look through a sales beat to the unit economics underneath it.
A branded food company reports 6% volume growth after increasing trade promotions. Net revenue grows 4%, gross margin falls 180 bps, and retailer inventory rises 9%. Management says the promotion is…
Write your answer, get it graded on technical accuracy, completeness and communication, and see exactly which mechanic you missed.
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