Preparing for an Interview at Investors Bank: 15 Common Questions and How to Answer Them

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A lot of the time, investment banking interview questions are very technical. You might have to figure out certain numbers, explain formulas, or walk the interviewer through a series of different investment banking tasks. At first, these interviews can seem scary, but if you study and get ready, you can ace an investment banking interview.

Investment banking interviews begin the same way as any other interview: getting to know one another. Most likely, the interviewer will tell you about the company and the job and then ask you some questions about yourself.

Interviewing at Investors Bank for an investment banking or finance role? You’ll need to come prepared to answer both behavioral and technical questions While the questions will vary based on the specific position, these 15 examples can help you get ready for an Investors Bank interview.

Overview of Investors Bank

Investors Bank is a full-service commercial bank headquartered in New Jersey with over $27 billion in assets Founded in 1926, they provide a wide range of banking, lending, and wealth management services to individuals, families, and businesses

Investors Bank has over 150 branches in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania, making it a very large bank. Also, the New York Giants, the New York Yankees, the New Jersey Devils, the Philadelphia 76ers, and other major sports teams use this bank.

Frequency of Entities:

Investors Bank: 12 times
New Jersey: 3 times
New York: 2 times
Pennsylvania: 1 time

Common Interview Questions at Investors Bank

Introductory Questions

Tell me about yourself. Your answer should be between one and two minutes long and should focus on your education, relevant experience, and interest in banking and finance.
Why are you interested in working at Investors Bank? Highlight your interest in commercial and investment banking, serving businesses and high-net-worth clients, and the bank’s strong regional presence
Why are you interested in this role? Explain why you are passionate about the specific position and how your skills would allow you to excel.

Behavioral Interview Questions

Tell me about a time you had to analyze complex data. Share a specific example highlighting your problem solving, critical thinking, and data analysis skills. Explain your thought process and the end result.
Describe a challenging client or account you had to handle. Discuss a difficult client interaction and how you worked to resolve their issues while maintaining professionalism. Emphasize communication, service, and relationship building skills.
When have you had to manage multiple priorities with tight deadlines? Give an example of successfully juggling many tasks at once. Share how you prioritized and delivered quality work on time.
Tell me about a time you made a mistake at work. Be honest, take responsibility, explain how you fixed it and what you learned from it. Show humility, growth, and accountability.

Technical Questions

What financial statements would you use to assess a company’s performance? Explain the purpose of the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement. Discuss key metrics and ratios from each one.
How would you calculate a company’s WACC? Walk through the steps to determine weighted average cost of capital using the company’s cost of debt, cost of equity, debt-to-equity ratio, and tax rate.
Explain how interest rates impact a bank’s profitability. Discuss the relationship between interest rates and net interest margin. Share how changing rates impact lending, deposits, and overall bank profitability.
What factors drive a bank’s share price? Mention financial performance metrics like return on assets, efficiency ratio, net interest margin as well as qualitative factors like management, compliance, and regulations.
How do banks hedge against interest rate risk? Describe strategies like interest rate swaps, financial futures, mortgage servicing rights, and more. Demonstrate an understanding of managing rate-sensitive assets and liabilities.

Finance and Accounting Questions

Walk me through a DCF analysis. Explain projecting future cash flows, determining the proper discount rate, calculating present value, and using the analysis to determine a company’s valuation.
What are the differences between book value and market value? Compare historical cost on the balance sheet versus current worth. Discuss implications for financial analysis like P/E ratios. Show an understanding of accounting principles.
Explain the difference between liquidity and profitability ratios. Discuss how the current ratio and quick ratio measure liquidity while net profit margin and ROA measure profitability. Share how bankers use both types of ratios.

How to Prepare for an Investors Bank Interview

To prepare for the interview:

Research Investors Bank, their services, clients, and regional focus
Study basic banking, accounting, and finance concepts
Review your resume and be ready to discuss your experience
Prepare stories of overcoming challenges using the STAR method
Anticipate both high-level behavioral questions and very technical questions
Practice your answers out loud to polish your delivery

With preparation, you can impress your interviewers and land the investment banking job at Investors Bank. Always be professional, exude confidence, and showcase your passion for finance. By mastering these common questions, you’ll be ready to succeed.

Walk me through your resume.

Your answer to this question should be brief and highlight any past finance experience you have. This is your chance to mention internships, programs, or previous jobs that are highly relevant to the role. You should also introduce yourself and briefly talk about your education, especially if you had any relevant classes.

Tell me about a company you admire or a recent deal you find interesting.

Employers want to see that you understand their needs, so they might ask you about a company you admire, a stock you have invested in, or an interesting merger or acquisition that happened not long ago.

You can talk about a recent deal that the bank you’re applying to helped make, but make sure it’s a deal that you’re really interested in. Genuine answers are always better received, and this question gives you an opportunity to mention some side interests.

For example, if you like to play video games in your spare time and a small game developer you like just went public, that could be a great topic to bring up!

investors bank interview questions

Mock Interview Question: Why Investment Banking?

FAQ

How to prepare for an interview in investment banking?

Preparing for an investment banking interview requires a lot of preparation. Before going into an interview, research the particular bank, familiarize yourself with the deals it has done in the past or is currently working on, and be prepared to talk about the economy and financial markets.

How do you prepare for an investor interview?

As with an interview for any job, make sure you do plenty of research about the company before you go. See what they have done well in the last few years, along with focusing on the parts that they could improve on. Make sure you’re aware of what their portfolio consists of and what kind of investments they focus on.

How hard are investment banking interviews?

Investment banks now expect candidates to possess detailed technical knowledge of accounting, finance, valuation, and M&A and LBO modeling. There are no “shortcuts” to mastering these topics; you need to put in the time to read, learn, and practice, or you won’t stand a chance against candidates who have.