Investment Banking Interview Questions

Investment banking interview questions fall into five buckets: behavioral and fit, technical accounting, valuation, markets and deals, and brain teasers. Behavioral questions probe why you want banking and how you work in teams under pressure. Technical questions test accounting, enterprise value, DCF, and LBO mechanics. Markets questions check whether you follow real transactions and can form an investment view. Brain teasers test structured thinking, though they are rarer in banking than in sales and trading interviews. According to Mergers & Inquisitions, the highest-frequency technical topics in entry-level interviews are accounting, equity value versus enterprise value, and valuation/DCF, so weight your prep there. This guide organizes the questions by type and shows what a strong answer looks like in each.

TL;DR

• Five categories: behavioral/fit, accounting, valuation, markets/deals, and brain teasers. Cover the first four deeply.
• Mergers & Inquisitions ranks accounting, enterprise value, and DCF as the most common technical topics.
• The process runs from a first round (or HireVue) to a superday; technicals get harder each round.
• Prepare three core stories: leadership, success, and failure, plus "why banking" and "why this bank."
• Lead every technical answer with structure, then mechanics. The DCF is the most common technical question.
• Have one stock pitch and one recent deal ready before any first-round interview.

Technical

Accounting, DCF, LBO, valuation, and M&A mechanics.

Behavioral

Why banking, resume story, leadership, failure, and fit.

Markets

Recent deals, stock pitch, sector view, and judgment.

What are the main types of investment banking interview questions?

Five types cover almost everything you will face: behavioral/fit, technical accounting, valuation, markets/deals, and brain teasers. Behavioral covers motivation and teamwork. Accounting covers the three statements. Valuation covers DCF, comps, and LBO logic. Markets covers live deals and your stock pitch. Brain teasers cover estimation under ambiguity. Mergers & Inquisitions groups them similarly: your story, fit questions, deal and market discussions, and technical questions.

Knowing which category a question belongs to tells you the answer shape: a story for behavioral, a step-by-step structure for technicals, and a clear thesis for markets. The table below maps the categories to what each one is actually testing.

How does the interview process flow from first round to superday?

The typical process is a resume screen, a first-round interview (phone, video, or HireVue), then a superday of back-to-back interviews. First rounds test fit and basic technicals; superdays test stamina, deeper modeling knowledge, and whether senior bankers want you on their team.

At a first round, expect "tell me about yourself," "why banking," and two or three core technicals such as the DCF or the depreciation question. Some banks add a HireVue video screen or a numerical reasoning test before the first live round. At the superday you meet roughly four to six interviewers across levels, and questions get harder: LBO mechanics, merger model accretion and dilution, and deal discussions. For the recorded-video format see the investment banking HireVue guide, and for the final round the superday guide. Have smart questions ready for your interviewers too; the questions to ask your IB interviewer list has options that signal genuine interest.

What behavioral and fit questions should you expect?

The core set is "tell me about yourself," "why investment banking," "why this bank," "walk me through your resume," plus teamwork, leadership, and failure prompts. Answer them with prepared stories told in a clear arc: situation, what you did, and the result. Build three core stories, a leadership story, a success story, and a failure story, that adapt to almost any prompt.

For example, "why investment banking" needs a specific trigger (a deal you followed, a class, an internship task) tied to skills the job actually uses, and a reason for banking over adjacent paths like consulting or corporate finance. The weak answer is vague or money-driven. Fit questions cut more candidates than people expect, so do not treat them as a warm-up. Our why investment banking answer guide builds a reason that survives follow-ups, tell me about yourself covers the opener, and why this bank handles the firm-specific version. For the full prompt bank see behavioral interview questions and the leadership and teamwork STAR guide.

What accounting questions come up?

The three-statement question appears in some form in almost every process. The classic prompt: "Depreciation goes up by 10, walk me through the statements." A strong answer moves statement by statement and names each line: operating income falls by 10, net income falls by the after-tax amount, the cash flow statement adds the non-cash charge back so operating cash flow falls only by the tax effect, and the balance sheet stays balanced through PP&E, cash, and retained earnings.

The follow-ups test whether you understand the mechanics rather than memorized the answer: what if it were an inventory write-down instead, where does the cash flow statement start, which statement matters most to a lender. Build the fluency with how to walk me through financial statements, the three financial statements linked explainer, and the three-statement practice questions.

What valuation questions come up?

"Walk me through a DCF" is the single most common technical question. A strong answer leads with the five steps before any numbers: project unlevered free cash flow, estimate terminal value, discount both at WACC, sum to enterprise value, then bridge to equity value. The follow-ups probe WACC build, terminal value methods, and when a DCF is the wrong tool.

Then come the multiples and buyout questions: "how do you pick comparable companies," "walk me through an LBO," "what drives IRR," and "when is enterprise value lower than equity value" (when the company holds net cash). The walk me through a DCF guide has the full structure, enterprise value vs equity value covers the bridge, comparable company analysis and precedent transactions cover the multiples approaches, and walk me through an LBO covers buyout returns. For follow-up reps see DCF interview questions and the technical questions hub.

What markets and deal questions come up?

The two staples are "tell me about a recent deal" and "pitch me a stock." For the deal, pick a transaction you can explain cold: buyer, target, strategic rationale, the price or multiple paid, and how it is financed (cash, stock, or debt). For the stock, present a clear thesis with two or three catalysts and what would prove you wrong.

Interviewers use these to separate candidates who memorized a guide from those genuinely interested in markets. Macro questions appear too: where interest rates are heading, or how a slowdown would hit M&A volumes. You do not need portfolio-manager depth, but you need specifics. Follow one or two live deals and one stock. The markets awareness guide covers rates and macro prompts, how to discuss a deal structures the transaction answer, and how to make a stock pitch covers the pitch.

Do brain teasers still come up in investment banking interviews?

Occasionally, but less than people fear. Mergers & Inquisitions files brain teasers under what not to over-prepare for banking interviews; they are more of a sales and trading staple. When they do appear, market-sizing prompts like "how many gas stations are in the US" test whether you can structure an ambiguous problem, state assumptions, and do arithmetic under pressure, not whether you land on the right number.

If you get one, talk out loud, break the problem into parts, and use round numbers. A light pass through the investment banking brain teasers guide and market sizing frameworks is enough for most candidates; the mental math practice test sharpens the arithmetic.

How should you prepare across all the categories?

Technicals first because they are the most predictable, then your stories, then your markets view. Know the three statements cold, memorize the five-step DCF, write three behavioral stories, and follow one or two live deals. Per Mergers & Inquisitions, accounting and DCF are the highest-frequency technical topics, so they deserve the most reps.

A practical sequence: spend the bulk of your time on accounting, equity value versus enterprise value, and the DCF, since those appear most often. Then write out your three stories plus "why banking" and "why this bank" and rehearse them out loud. Finally, prepare one stock pitch and one recent deal. Practicing aloud matters because interviews test explaining your reasoning in real time, not recognizing the right answer on paper. The 400 questions guide is the standard full bank, and how to prepare for investment banking interviews lays out a study plan.

Practice inside this guide

Interview readiness check

Question 1 of 1

Give a one-minute answer that links your background to investment banking.

Your answer

Reveal model structure

The free local rep is the story prompt: compare your answer with the authored model structure. It is a self-check, not an AI grade.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many investment banking interview questions are technical?

Technical questions dominate the screening function but vary by round. Mergers & Inquisitions notes that accounting, equity value versus enterprise value, and DCF are the most common technical topics in entry-level interviews. First rounds often lean behavioral, with technicals used as a filter; superdays go deeper on modeling.

What is the most common investment banking interview question?

"Walk me through a DCF" is the most common technical question, and "tell me about yourself" is the most common fit question. Both appear in nearly every process, so a polished answer to each is non-negotiable. Lead the DCF with its five-step structure, not numbers.

How do you answer "why investment banking"?

Give a specific, experience-grounded reason tied to skills the job uses, not a generic "I like finance" answer. Reference a concrete moment (a deal, a class, an internship task) and connect it to what bankers actually do. See our why investment banking answer guide for a full framework.

Do investment banking interviews include brain teasers?

Rarely. Mergers & Inquisitions treats brain teasers as a category not worth over-preparing for banking interviews; they are more of a sales and trading staple. A few estimation and probability puzzles are enough prep for most candidates.

How many rounds are in an investment banking interview?

Most candidates face a first round (phone or HireVue) and a final superday, sometimes with a numerical test or an extra interview in between. Early rounds screen for fit and basic technicals; the superday goes deeper. See our investment banking superday guide for the final round and the banking HireVue guide if your first round is recorded.

What's the best way to practice technical questions?

Practice out loud and in mock interviews, not just by reading. The skill being tested is explaining your reasoning in real time, which silent reading doesn't build. Work through the investment banking technical interview questions bank, then rehearse each answer aloud until the structure is automatic.

Sources

• Mergers & Inquisitions: Investment Banking Interview Questions & Answers (checked June 2026)
• Mergers & Inquisitions: 400 Questions Investment Banking (checked June 2026)
• Wall Street Oasis: Investment Banking Interview Questions and Answers (checked June 2026)
• IGotAnOffer: 14 IB Technical Interview Questions (checked June 2026)