Using a virtual trading account in interviews - is it a bad idea?

Okay so as someone who was abysmally broke during college I couldn't afford trading at decent volumes with real money. Up until my internship, I had basically no trades whatsoever, and even in my internship, I'm barely doing any

However, I had a virtual trading account with trading^212 for 2.5 years with some really good returns (total 220%, factoring in pandemic hysteria). Understandably, the virtual trading doesn't affect real prices or security movement; however, I picked my trades based on actual fundamental analysis that I can justify in an interview

Should I be confident to disclose that or does it sound kinda pathetic?

2 Comments
 

regardless of it being real money, trying to convince someone who knows what theyre talking about that a 200% return over 2 years was a result of fundamental analysis or anything other than luck will just annoy them. I'd recommend talking about specific plays you made, why you made them, and how they turned out.

 
Most Helpful

Exercitationem mollitia voluptatem minus a nihil voluptas qui. Vitae nobis culpa deserunt necessitatibus rerum. Autem dignissimos dolores est nostrum soluta.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (65) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”