Complete interview guide Flashcards
(60 cards)
Why do you want to work for ING?
- I’m drawn to ING because it’s a dutch bank operating in over 100 countries with 60,000+ employees.
- I am particularly drawn to the bank’s strong commitment to sustainability, which creates lasting value for customers and the environment.
- This approach aligns perfectly with my personal values, making it an ideal place to contribute my skills. I thought I might be a valuable asset to the bank since I am bilingual.
What is the trade lifecycle (globally)
- Pre-trade clearance
- Trade Execution
- Post-trade reconciliation
Pre-trade Clearance
Planning and decision making
- Research and analysis, macro dynamics, compliance and risk checks and its compliance with regulations
- Putting in the trade order
- Order routing
Trade Execution
- Order matching
- Trade confirmation
- Execution notification
Post trade
- clearing -. Who own what?
- Settlement - the money actually wired?
- Reconciliation - The internal system reflects what actually happened
- Ongoing reporting and compliance
What are the different valuation methods when valuing a business?
- Income Approach
- Market Approach
- Asset-Based Approach
Income Approach
- Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis
- Capitalization of Earnings
Market Approach
- Comparable Company Analysis (Comps)
- Precedent Transactions
Asset-Based Approach
- Net Asset Value (NAV) / Book Value
- Liquidation Value
Walk me through your resume / tell me a bit more about yourself
- Born and raised in the netherlands
- studies same time line as jobs
Can you kind of walk me through one of your experiences in more detail?
Specifically, I want to hear a little bit more about your job responsibilities. For that experience.
And then what do you think you really kind of contributed or how do you think you really added value to the team.
- At Kroesepaternotte, where I worked as a Valuation Analyst, it was a relatively small firm, and some of the internal processes were still quite manual and outdated.
- While my core responsibilities involved reviewing leases, running valuation models, and preparing valuation reports for institutional clients and banks like ING,
- I also noticed early on that a lot of time was being lost to repetitive tasks.
To help streamline things, I created Excel shortcuts and semi-automated templates that sped up our modeling process. I also took the initiative to standardize how we described and formatted transaction comparables, which helped bring more consistency and professionalism to our reports.
- These improvements didn’t just save time — they made it easier for the senior team to review and for clients to understand our work. I think that blend of technical skills and process thinking was really where I added value.
Can you kind of talk a little bit more about what exactly the main covenants were here? And then how did you go about analyzing and negotiating them
Sure — in most of the transactions I supported, the main covenants were financial ones tied to loan performance. These included things like the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio, debt service coverage ratio (DSCR), and in some cases, interest coverage or minimum occupancy levels. My role was to review the loan documents and model how those covenants would behave under different performance scenarios.
For example, I would often build sensitivity tables in Excel to see how changes in rental income, cap rates, or vacancy could impact the borrower’s ability to stay in compliance. This analysis helped our team flag potential risks to the lender or investor, and in some cases, inform discussions around possible covenant adjustments.
While I wasn’t directly negotiating the covenants myself, my analysis fed into those conversations — especially when clients or our senior team needed to assess whether a covenant was too tight, or whether a waiver might be needed.
And can you kind of maybe talk a little bit more about how you kind of valued the property, or just maybe kind of walk me through, like, what sort of main things you kind of covered, you know, in the investment memo, or in the investment discussion. How did you value the property? What were some of the key merits and the key risks
Explain
What would you say was the toughest part of doing this project for you? And how did you like overcome the challenge
Great question. I’d say the toughest part of that project was finding reliable market comparables for investment transactions — especially during the early COVID period. In certain cities, there was very little transactional activity, so it was hard to justify assumptions on yields or pricing without recent data.
Rather than rely solely on outdated sales comps or wait for something to hit the public records, I took a more proactive approach. I started calling contacts at other brokerage houses like Cushman & Wakefield and CBRE to ask if they had any off-market or recently closed deals they could share — even if it was just indicative pricing or guidance on investor sentiment. That extra step helped us build a more realistic picture of where yields were trending and gave more credibility to our valuation work.
By doing that, I was able to strengthen our assumptions, and the final report was well-received by the client — they even commented on how helpful it was that we supported the valuation with real-time market color.
And then what specifically kind of draws you to this particular role here with ing
- Based on my experience as a valuation analyst, I’ve developed strong analytical skills and a high attention to detail. I’ve reviewed thousands of legal and loan documents, including credit agreements. Which gives me transferable skills for this role
- I’m also a strong communicator — I was president of my fraternity, leading meetings and coordinating with members, and in my Valuation analyst role, I regularly worked with institutional investors as the main point of contact
And can you talk a little bit more about what the daily responsibilities look like, you know, for this specific role? Like, what will you be doing? What do you think are the key skill sets that you need? And how do you think you’re well-positioned
I’d be responsible for managing syndicated loan operations, including coordinating funding notices, interest payments, a nd repayments schedules. I’d ensure compliance with loan agreements, monitor financial covenants like LTV and DSCR, and act as the key contact between ING, borrowers, and other lenders. I’d also make sure all documentation and processes meet legal and regulatory standards.
Strengths
During my final year, I was completing a full-time Master’s in Finance with a specialization in real estate at the University of Amsterdam, while also working full-time as a valuations analyst.
Task:
I had to balance the demands of rigorous academic coursework—like financial modeling and advanced real estate valuation—with tight client deadlines and high expectations at work. Both roles required deep focus, accuracy, and time-sensitive deliverables.
Action:
To manage this, I created a strict schedule, blocking out early mornings and evenings for study, and dedicating work hours exclusively to client tasks. I prioritized based on urgency and complexity, and I communicated clearly with both my professors and team at work to manage expectations and avoid conflicts. There were moments where I had to submit a valuation report in the same week I had final exams, so I’d wake up at 5 a.m. to study and work late to deliver on time.
Result:
Despite the pressure, I graduated on time with strong grades and met every deadline at work—often even ahead of schedule. The experience really sharpened my ability to perform under pressure, manage time efficiently, and maintain high-quality output across multiple demanding responsibilities.
And then what do you think is kind of like your biggest kind of weakness? And then how have you been improving upon that weakness.
Story about delegating work
And then can you kind of also walk me through a specific kind of problem that you solved and want to kind of use this as a way, you know, to understand a little bit better, kind of like your ability to apply logic and your ability to your ability to kind of use critical thinking to problem solve?
As a valuation analyst at Kroesepaternotte, I was asked to produce a rent‑revision analysis for a mixed‑use street in Amsterdam. When I began, I discovered there were no published comparables for that specific block—recent transactions simply hadn’t been recorded.
Task:
I needed robust market data to justify our proposed rent increases, but without nearby comps, the client would have no confidence in the recommendations.
Action:
I first mapped every building on the street using municipal property records and tax registries to identify the owner or managing agent of each address. Then I cold‑called and emailed these contacts—sometimes having to navigate gatekeepers—to request their current rent rolls and lease terms. As data came in, I normalized the figures (adjusting for size, condition, and lease length) and built a mini‑database of true on‑street comparables. Finally, I integrated this into our rent‑revision model, running sensitivity checks to ensure the numbers held up under different vacancy and market‑growth scenarios.
Result:
With real‑time, peer‑verified data, my report convinced the client to implement rents that were on average 18% higher than their existing rates. They approved the revision strategy immediately, leading to an anticipated €120K uplift in annual income—and I proved that a creative, methodical approach can solve even “data‑dark” valuation challenges
Can you kind of walk me through a time when you did work on a team, and you had a conflict with someone that you had to that you had to resolve. And what was your kind of approach to resolving that conflict.
Discussion about Suistainability on price
And can you also talk walk me through a time where you had to kind of manage expectations and specifically manage up.
I was responsible for the process of valuing a portfolio of 50 properties. I’ve acted as the main point of contact between multiple stakeholders, including institutional investors, legal teams, and clients during complex valuation assignments. I ensured clear communication by setting expectations early, creating centralized documentation, and providing regular progress updates. My approach is proactive — I anticipate issues, follow up diligently, and make sure everyone is aligned on key milestones and deliverables. This helps prevent miscommunication and builds trust across all parties
A specific business
CBRE - ESG
so can you kind of walk me through what was the biggest mistake that you’ve ever made on the job. And then how did you kind of rectify it
One of the biggest mistakes I made was early on when valuing a suburban shopping mall. I built my DCF and capitalization analyses assuming all revenue came from the retail units, but I completely overlooked the parking lot—which in that market generated significant fee income and added tangible value to the asset.
When we did the follow‑up valuation a year later, I noticed our net operating income growth looked muted compared to market expectations. Digging in, I realized I’d never input the parking revenue. I immediately pulled the parking contracts, updated my rent roll and expense schedule, and reran the model. The corrected valuation was roughly 12% higher, reflecting that ancillary income stream.
To make sure it never happened again, I introduced an “ancillary revenue” checklist into our standard valuation process—covering things like parking, signage leases, and service charges—and asked a colleague to peer‑review that section before final sign‑off. That change has since caught similar oversights and strengthened the reliability of all our reports
What about the kind of the biggest risk that you’ve taken and walk me through? Kind of like how you were thinking through the upside down side of taking the risk. And what did you end up doing? And and sort of what ended up happenin
One of the biggest risks I took was during the Bitcoin crash in 2021. I had a significant portion of my crypto portfolio tied up in Bitcoin, and when prices started to plummet from the highs of $60K, I faced a tough decision. The upside of holding was the potential for recovery if Bitcoin rebounded, but the downside was the growing uncertainty about further regulatory pressure and a prolonged market downturn.
After analyzing the market and considering my personal risk tolerance, I decided to sell everything when Bitcoin was around $45K to cut my losses. I knew the market could go lower, and I didn’t want to get caught in a further drop, which, in hindsight, was a critical decision as the price eventually dropped below $30K.
While it was a 20% loss on my investment, I viewed it as a calculated risk to protect my remaining capital and avoid a bigger potential loss. The decision allowed me to regroup and reallocate into more stable assets, and later on, I did re-enter the market when conditions seemed more favorable. The experience taught me a lot about timing, risk management, and the importance of staying disciplined in volatile markets.
