London Stock Exchange Group Associate Analyst Interview Questions and Answers

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: Most people with CGPA more than 7.5 made it to the test shortlist.

Round: Test
Experience: Not very different from the aptitude tests of most other companies. Technical test was also like an aptitude test but involved more questions from probability.
Duration: 1 hour

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: I had course relating to multivariate data analysis and applied time series. The interviewer mostly checked how comfortable I am with thise topics. Following this he asked a probability question. How many times do you have to toss a coin until you get 2 heads in a row?
After this he asked about my project where I had mathematically solved partial differential equations. He asked more about the methods that I used and so on.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: A long interview with 2 panelists. It is very important to come well prepared for this rpund. It is okay if the technical round wasnt as good as expected but HR interview is critical.

College Name: IIT Madras

Round: Test
Experience: It was a decent test as normal apti tests but you have to keep little extra knowledge about retail banking and econometrics.
Tips: Just practice well for all aptitude test and boost your speed with accuracy.
Duration: 60 minutes
Total Questions: 40

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: It was a good discussion but in between there was a chaos as number of people in my group was too big(14) as far as GDs are concerned.But overall it was good and everyone whosoever wanted, had put their points.
Tips: Don't fight during GD. Make sure that whenever you get chance you utilize it fully and make a very effective point. Also keep in mind it is a GD so you should be humble to others as well.
Duration: 30 minutes

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: It was a very weird experience.
After get shortlisted from test late in the night, our GD was early in the morning and then followed by interview. And then something really strange happened.I was waiting for my turn since afternoon and I was the last one to be interviewed. When I was called for my turn, all three panel of interviewers came out of their rooms and they announced the result before taking my interview so it was shocking because as par our campus rule you can not straight away declare the results to candidates before the whole process gets over. It shook me and I was very angry at that time but I kept myself calm and turned that anger into a positive way thanks to my friend who were there with me during that time. All I thought was I will get a chance and now I don't have anything to lose so I have to make a better impact on them than the other guys and convince them to increase their selected candidate list. The interview started with general HR questions, why do you want to join us? Why do you think we should hire you? And then they started asking questions over my project which I mentioned in my resume. After that there were few basic probability questions and some analytical puzzles. And during my interview I said I like to play with numbers so they threw me a multiplication 55555*55555 and it took me around 25-30 seconds to do it so I think that was a really effective part of my interview well at last I got selected in HSBC.
Tips: Don't get panic and never lose your calm. Situations can be more worst than what you thought it to be but be confident on yourself. Sooner or later you will be rewarded for your work. Good luck in advance :)

General Tips: Just be yourself and be confident. Be with those who make you feel comfortable. Keep calm and eventually everything will fall in the right place.
Skill Tips: I would say that patience is not a skill but it is as important as any other skill during your interviews. You might encounter some serious situations which might take you on your nerve so be patient.
During your interviews make sure whatever you know you should be able to communicate it well enough otherwise your knowledge is of no use. At the same time ensure that you don't really show off that you know more. If you know more about that problem be humble to the interviewer as discuss or share your thoughts in a very polite manner. And last but not the least is the analytical skills. You might be asked to decode some case or do guesstimates to be prepared for it. Practice it a lot with your friends or else whichever way you like it to be done.
Skills: Analytical skill, Communication, Patience
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Motivation: My only motivation was to get a analytical job which I was targeting. And apart from it there was a reason in my life to get this job and do something for someone very special. So, this keeps me motivated even today.
Funny Moments: The whole placement process right from companies visiting your campus to giving test and getting shortlisted for the interviews was really stressful but when I look back I cherish all those moments where we all friend sat together abusing some bull shit companies their procedure. How we used to run like a wild animal from one test to another one PPT to another. Those late might discussion talking about our future. Those were the lifetime memories, good or bad, which will stay with us always.

Godd luck again for your placements. :)

Round: Test
Experience: It was a basic Apti test through which they shortlisted around 40-50 students.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: So, be prepared with current affairs, slightly on the financial side, for this company, as they also expect you to reason out your decision.

Round: Other Interview
Experience: The next round was Personal Interview. It was a very casual interaction where I told them about my projects and enquired about the job profile and growth.

General Tips: It was rewarding. The process is not only about getting a job, but learning about certain life skills which help you through the process. Patience and determination are the key.
Skill Tips: As far as the Apti is concerned, speed and accuracy is very important and only regular practice can get you there. And take Apti very seriously because it is an elimination process and you have to fight your way in. GDs require a sound knowledge of current affairs and most importantly you should have anopinion about most of the issues. Newspapers, most importantly the editorial section which has experts offering their views on issues will help you develop your opinion. Personal interview is a round where you can steer the whole conversation to your advantage by taking them only through your positives and strengths. Be confident, show that you are genuinely flexible and speak with conviction.
College Name: NIT SURATHKAL

Round: Test
Experience: It was an aptitude test including basic quantitative aptitude, logical reasoning data interpretation, reading comprehension and finance section( this section was there only in HSBC it included few concepts which we learn in Engineering Economics and some basic idea of bond and stocks can be useful) but even if you don't do that well in this section you can still clear the test as I did rather most of us did.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: 2nd round( Group Discussion):- 50 students were shortlisted after round 1 for GD. Other Topics were:- 1) Rupee devaluation pro's and con's 2) FDI

Round: HR Interview
Experience: It can revolve around banking stuff if you know it or else it can be simple H.R round also in which they might ask you about your internship even if you have done it in core or they can give you some case study and be prepared with all puzzles.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: It was more or less the same as 3rd round it was taken because the panel was bit confused about whom they should reject

General Tips: The overall experience was very good the panel was quite friendly it became tiring because I finished my 3rd round at 2:30 am and had my 4th round 8:00 am in morning so be prepared for such hectic schedule and do not let it affect your performance.
Skill Tips: Just read "THE HINDU" daily. Read properly about recent reforms which can affect the corporate world (e.g land acquisition bill was reformed just before my interview so I used it in my case study so anything can be useful) Try to be unique in your answers for questions like, why you want this company?, why we should recruit you?
College Name: NIT SURATHKAL

Round: PPT
Experience: Attend the PPT if you aim to get into HSBC. The team tends to notice your presence and absence, and the questions you ask. It makes a good first impression. If your pointer is on the lower end, be sure to do this - it shows interest, and they really do appreciate you taking the effort.

Round: Test
Experience: Written Aptitude test: Consisted of 3 sections - Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation (important), Verbal & Logical Reasoning (important), and lastly, Economics and Finance Questions. There was negative marking, and as far as we were told - sectional cut-offs as well! The finance and economic section is not that important - but it does have some questions from the PPT.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: Super simple. Format is 10 people in a GD, starting with a round robin introduction, a 20-minute discussion, and then round robin conclusion. Selections were based on the points people made, and how they interacted with others.
Duration: 20 minutes

Round: Other Interview
Experience: Interview: Entirely based on your resume - they go quite in depth. Some questions you will be asked for sure: about your internships, projects, and academics, your motivation to join analytics, motivation to join HSBC, location preferences, your career objectives, your interests. They also randomly stopped me mid-sentence and asked me my GRE score. I hadn't written GRE, but I hear some people who did fell for the ploy. Be careful I guess.

General Tips: The interview process was informal - the team is really nice! I think that helped me be a lot calmer and represent myself better.
Skill Tips: Have a well-formatted one-page resume. Make sure everything on your resume is 100% true, especially your interests. Be genuine.
Skills: Apti questions.
College Name: NIT SURATHKAL

Round: Test
Experience: Basic aptitude test. East to clear.
Duration: 1 hour
Total Questions: 25

Skills: Reasoning Ability, Mathematical Logic, Logical Reasoning, General Knowledge
College Name: Sri Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain