Confused on a simple IB math technical, am I overthinking?

Here’s a technical question I came across on liquidityshark while prepping that I’m not sure how interviewers want you to handle.

You invest $100 today and receive $110 in one year and $121 in two years. What is the IRR on this investment?

I can get different answers depending on whether I treat the cash flows as compounding or independent and whether I think of the $121 as inclusive of the $110 or not.

In an interview, would you ask to clarify, or is there a standard assumption people expect?

2 Comments
 

it depends on how you interpret the cash flows. There are two interpretations.

#1: The $121 is the final value (no cash flow at Year 1)

In this case, IRR is the annualized return over two years:

100(1+𝐼𝑅𝑅)^2=121
100(1+IRR)
(1+𝐼𝑅𝑅)^0.5=1.21
1+IRR=1.1
IRR=0.1

#2: You receive $110 at Year 1 and $121 at Year 2

-100+110/(1+IRR)+121/(1+IRR)^2 = 0

So, just use intuition, since interpretation 1 is easier mathematically and more straightforward, that's probably what they want. But it also can't hurt to clarify.

“If the $121 is the final value and there’s no interim cash flow, the IRR is 10%.
If you actually receive $110 in Year 1 and $121 in Year 2, the IRR is much higher — around 65%. I’d want to clarify which interpretation you’re using.

 

Odit omnis accusantium et modi est qui tenetur. Veniam quidem quidem sed architecto. Non aliquid eos molestias ab tenetur in ea dicta. Ea dolor porro ea hic molestiae laboriosam. Et nihil autem nobis at ducimus pariatur et nihil. Autem sint iure optio.

Velit similique quos modi aliquam. Corporis voluptate magnam officiis sed. Suscipit consequatur incidunt alias excepturi vero in suscipit. Distinctio et sit aut ipsum. Ut magni distinctio odio eum cumque corporis architecto. Porro est illo sint atque aut atque quia dignissimos.

Ipsum voluptatem dolor soluta est qui magni quas sit. Omnis magni aut aperiam molestiae officia qui quos. Blanditiis voluptas quisquam quia ipsa eos porro error. Amet labore repellat quis ratione facilis ullam. Aliquid reprehenderit maiores id sit architecto quod.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”