Event Driven Credit Interview

Hi all,

I am a third year analyst from a restructuring advisor with upcoming interviews in even driven public credit investing. 

Any tips on how shall I prepare? More detailed discussions via PM would be amazing if somebody is willing to share their experience!

All the best and thanks in advance!

7 Comments
 

Getting prepared for bonds math stuff, capital structure analysis (fulcrum facility, seniority, security, baskets, potential leakages, liquidity), rx stuff like implementation, derivatives, supply dynamics in the wider credit industry, etc... but yeah feel like i will get crushed on the "pitch me a credit" question...

Any ideas on how to get smart on cap structure arbitrage (including equity) on a no name basis for the time being? 

 
Most Helpful

I think you should be prepared to speak about your transaction experience through the lens of the investor groups - which tranche of debt would you have invested in, strengths / weaknesses of other securities, anything in a deal that you disagreed with, etc. 

Event driven ideas in credit are not limited to distress, which you're right there isn't a lot of right now. Anything with a catalyst is fair game. Merger arb, asset sales, etc can all yield interesting evently trades in a low default environment. There are some mutual funds and other public vehicles that traffic in liquid, event driven credit. You could look through the books and see if anything sticks out for inspiration. 

For an easy way to cheat, just look for recently announced exchange offers, review the deal with a quick PF cap structure and credit metrics, and determine whether or not you'd buy + participate in exchange or hold out, if that is an option 

 

I think you hit an important point. Especially with the event-driven guys, it's important to be able to voice an opinion on things you've disagreed with on deals given it signals confidence and conviction in your thought process. Whether it's right or not, as long as you can articulate why you would've done things differently based in logic, you'll be seen as someone who could add value via critical thought. This isn't to say you should search for or create disagreements for past transactions if you don't have any, but suggesting things which could've been done differently or played out in a separate manner may be worth thinking about in your prep.

 

Architecto porro facilis et alias omnis. Non et nam est et voluptatem aliquid dolorem aliquid. Aut quia et esse est adipisci explicabo. Iusto aliquam et occaecati in earum. Labore occaecati est in dolorem ea. Officia incidunt et officiis distinctio.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Point72 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.1%
  • AQR Capital Management 97.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.1%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Magnetar Capital 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.0%
  • Blackstone Group 97.0%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.0%
  • Millennium Partners 95.0%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Hedge Fund

  • AQR Capital Management 99.0%
  • Point72 98.1%
  • D.E. Shaw 97.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.2%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Portfolio Manager (9) $1,648
  • Vice President (27) $464
  • Director/MD (12) $423
  • NA (9) $320
  • Engineer/Quant (86) $288
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (26) $284
  • Manager (4) $282
  • 2nd Year Associate (32) $253
  • 1st Year Associate (77) $191
  • Analysts (242) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (29) $145
  • Junior Trader (5) $102
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (282) $96
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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”