Assessing NAV Quality
Easy
Tests whether a candidate treats reported NAV as evidence rather than fact.
How would you assess whether a private equity fund's reported NAV is reliable?
Valuation · Private Equity · ~7 minModel answer & graded attempt
All interview questions
Lexington Partners interview questions
Other14 questions reported in Lexington Partners interviews, organised by the group that asks them. Every question carries a model answer and graded feedback on your own attempt.
Questions
14
Easy · Medium
4 · 6
Hard
4
Model builds
0
Built in the spreadsheet grid
Secondaries
NAV discounts, J-curve mitigation, continuation vehicles and pacing. 14 questions
Why Secondaries Instead of Direct Private Equity?
Easy
A standard first-round motivation question at secondaries investors.
Why does secondaries investing appeal to you relative to direct private equity?
Deal Analysis · Private Equity · ~7 minModel answer & graded attempt
Why Transfer Consent Matters in an LP Secondary
Easy
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?
Due Diligence · Private Equity · ~7 minModel answer & graded attempt
Why Unfunded Commitments Matter
Easy
A basic pricing check in every LP-led case study.
Why do unfunded commitments reduce the price a buyer pays for an LP interest?
Financial Analysis · Private Equity · ~7 minModel answer & graded attempt
Modelling a Secondary Fund Interest
Medium
A common secondaries case-study modelling prompt.
What are the key inputs in a cash-flow model for an LP secondary purchase?
Financial Mathematics · Private Equity · ~10 minModel answer & graded attempt
Pricing a Tail-End Fund
Medium
A special-situations case common in mature secondaries portfolios.
What makes a tail-end fund interest difficult to underwrite?
Deal Analysis · Private Equity · ~10 minModel answer & graded attempt
The J-Curve and How Secondaries Mitigate It
Medium
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?
Portfolio Construction · Private Equity · ~11 minModel answer & graded attempt
Underwriting Concentration Risk
Medium
A portfolio-risk follow-up in LP-led underwriting.
How does concentration change the way you price a secondary portfolio?
Portfolio Construction · Private Equity · ~10 minModel answer & graded attempt
Updating a Secondary Underwrite After a Quarterly Report
Medium
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…
Financial Analysis · Private Equity · ~11 minModel answer & graded attempt
Using Secondaries for Distribution Pacing
Medium
A portfolio-construction question for secondaries and institutional investor interviews.
How can a secondaries allocation help an LP manage its private markets pacing?
Portfolio Construction · Private Equity · ~10 minModel answer & graded attempt
Analysing a Continuation Vehicle
Hard
GP-led deals are now most of the secondaries market, and the conflict is the analysis.
A GP proposes moving its best portfolio company into a continuation vehicle. As a secondaries buyer, what do you assess?
Deal Analysis · Private Equity · ~13 minModel answer & graded attempt
Building a Secondary Downside Case
Hard
Tests whether a candidate can combine valuation and liquidity risk in a fund-level case.
What should a credible downside case include for a secondary portfolio?
Financial Analysis · Private Equity · ~12 minModel answer & graded attempt
Pricing a Secondary With Uneven Distribution Timing
Hard
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,…
Financial Analysis · Private Equity · ~14 minModel answer & graded attempt
Pricing an LP Secondary
Hard
The core analytical exercise on a secondaries team.
An LP wants to sell a $50m NAV position in a 2019-vintage buyout fund. How do you price it?
Deal Analysis · Private Equity · ~13 minModel answer & graded attempt
Practise the Lexington Partners set under interview conditions.
Write your answer, get it graded on technical accuracy, completeness and communication, and see exactly which mechanic you missed.
Company tags reflect where a question type is commonly reported in interviews. They are not sourced from, endorsed by, or affiliated with Lexington Partners.