Guide to interview success Junior Success Markets and Research November 2015 Welcome Congratulations on your acceptance into the Junior Success program. At the end of the two days you will have the opportunity to interview for an internship with us for the summer. To help prepare you for the interview process, we are happy to offer you this Guide to Interview Success. Success We understand you may not have interviewed with an Investment Bank before, and it can be difficult to know where to start. This guide includes practice interview questions, tips for interviewing, external resources you can reference, as well as information on Barclays’ investment bank and the desks where an intern might rotate during the summer internship program. program Markets and Research consist of various businesses within the investment bank, all working to provide insights, service and execution for clients. Collectively, we serve a client base that consists of asset managers, hedge funds, pension plans, commercial banks, corporations, insurance companies, broker-dealers and REITs. Our goa Ou goal iss to understand u de sta d our ou clients’ c e ts needs, eeds, to build u d long-lasting o g ast g relationships e at o s ps and a d become their go-to broker-dealer. The desk descriptions in the appendix of this guide provide high-level summaries of the different desks and some of the roles that you might play within Markets and Research. Each is different: in the types of clients they focus on, what they y y primary p y responsibilities. p have to offer clients, and their day-to-day You won’t necessarily be expected to know everything that’s in this guide, but we encourage you to use these materials to help learn about Barclays and prepare for your interviews. Lastly, remember to use your Barclays coaching buddy as a resource. They are h happy to answer any questions and d are there h to help h l guide d you through h h the h process. We wish you the best of luck. Markets and Research Contents • What does Barclays look for? • Sample questions • Interview tips checklist • About Barclays – Investment Bank • About Barclays – Markets and Research • Tips from the intern class of 2015 • Resources – links and descriptions • Appendix – desk descriptions 1 What does Barclays look for? What your interviewer is looking for… Passion for the markets and interest in Barclays Raw smarts and problem solving skills • Does the candidate demonstrate an understanding of markets? • Is I there th evidence id off interest i t t in i the th markets k t • Why Barclays? • Does the candidate demonstrate strong academic achievement? • Is there evidence of problem solving or quantitative analysis? • Has the candidate worked in a team environment? Teamwork and leadership skills Communication skills • Has the candidate held any leadership roles? Or demonstrated leadership qualities in other ways? • How well does the candidate communicate his or her thoughts? g • How well does the candidate listen and articulate their responses to questions? • How has the candidate displayed successful communication in the past? 2 Sample questions Understanding/Passion for the markets Teamwork and leadership • Do you think the stock market is efficient? • Describe a situation where you led a team • What newspapers/publications do you read? Tell me about an interesting article you read today • Describe a situation where you recognized a problem or an opportunity and took action • going g on in the economyy today? y Where is it What is g going and why? • y championing p g an Have yyou ever found yourself unpopular position? • How has the U.S. stock market performed YTD and what are the factors that are driving it higher or bringing it down? What are your thoughts on how 2015 pans out? • How do you build rapport? • Describe your relationships with colleagues, professors, bosses and others in a significant academic/work experience • Describe a situation where you have needed to sacrifice your personal objective for the team’s benefit • What are the Dow Jones Industrial Average, NASDAQ, S&P 500? H How d do th they work? k? • What do you think about gold as an asset class? • In group projects, what role do you tend to take? • Where is the 10-year rate headed? • • Where do you see interest rates going and why? Tell me about a time you failed and how you responded to it • What is the relationship between interest rates and exchange rates? • What are your biggest strengths and weaknesses? • How would you invest 1 million dollars? • Why are you passionate about the markets? • Why are you interested in Sales and Trading? • Tell me what a trader does. Interest in Barclays Other questions • How did you learn about Barclays and what interests you in our firm? • Give me an example of something quantitative you have done in the past • Why do you want to work at Barclays? • How would a friend describe you? • What are the factors that differentiate our firm from the other bulge bracket banks? • Where do you see yourself in 5 years? What are you short/long term goals? • What interests you in our program? • What interests do you have outside of work? • What would you like me to know most that is not in your resume? 3 Interview tips checklist Before the interview ✓ During the interview Research Barclays, recent industry and ✓ market related news ✓ eye contact Review common questions and practice ✓ Display confidence and send a positive message with your body language answering them ✓ Offer a firm handshake and maintain good Think of concrete examples and ✓ accomplishments you can use to highlight Listen carefully and welcome all questions with a smile your skills ✓ Develop a short summary of who you are, ✓ what you do, what makes you unique and Give honest, direct answers, but stay positive why you would be an ideal candidate for an internship at Barclays ✓ Prepare questions you would like to ask ✓ If you don’t understand a question, ask for it to be clarified or repeated 4 About Barclays Investment Bank Barclays is an international financial services provider engaged in personal, corporate co po ate and a d investment vest e t banking, ba g, credit c ed t cards and wealth management with an extensive presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. Barclays’ purpose is to help people achieve their ambitions – in the right way. John McFarlane Executive Chairman With 325 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs over 130,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide. Group Functions Ma arkets and a Ressearch Banking Investment Bank Barclaycard Africa Banking Corporate Finance Mergers & Acquisitions Sales Compliance Trading g Human Resources Personal and Corporate Banking Global Finance and Risk Solutions Research Finance 5 Public Finance Risk Trade Capture Utility Technology About Barclays Markets and Research • Products trade 24 hours a day, affect almost every other asset class and centers around macroeconomic events such as central bank policy, geopolitical events, and trade imbalances. • p Include: Foreign g Exchange, g , Interest Rates,, Swaps, p , Treasuries,, Commodities Groups • Credit products span capital structure and Barclays acts as a provider of liquidity in a variety of debt markets. • Groups Include: High Yield/High Grade Bonds, Leveraged Loans, Distressed Debt, Primary CMBS, Securitized Products, Municipal Bonds • The h Equities division d provides d execution services for f many exchange h traded d d and d over-theh counter products and facilitates access to risk management tools. • Groups Include: US/Global Equities, Electronic Sales and Trading, Equity Derivatives (Options), Equity Syndicate • The Prime division distributes firm’s stock inventory and provides leverage to clients to purchase assets both physically and synthetically. • Product offering encompasses Equities, Fixed Income, and Derivatives. Groups include Equity Finance, Synthetics, Prime Lending and On-Boarding. • Barclays Capital is committed to providing our clients a best-in-class global research franchise. The team of more than 750 Research professionals covers every discipline, asset class and region. With the team’s experience and expertise, they deliver actionable insights and innovative products to clients, partnering with them to ensure they best leverage the firm’s resources and make informed investment decisions. • The Public Finance team is dedicated to providing comprehensive investment banking and capital markets solutions to public sector clients. Covering state and local governments, public authorities, health care systems, universities and other not-forprofit organizations, the Public Finance team helps clients with their complex financial needs. • Client Capital Management (CCM) is responsible for the management of Capital and Balance sheet across multiple product classes to ensure appropriate returns for our shareholders whilst continuing to deliver for our clients. • Barclays Treasury is responsible for ensuring the stability and safety of the bank by optimizing its use of scarce liquidity, capital and balance sheet resources. Macro Credit Equities Prime Research Public Finance Client Capital Management Treasury 6 Tips from the intern class of 2015 “I prepared a stock pitch and although no one ever asked for it, it really helped p because it forced me to have knowledge about the market and about a specific sector – mine was an energy stock. Even if no one asks for it explicitly, you can still weave the knowledge into the conversation.” “Have a story. Don’t just list off your resume, put it into a story that makes sense and focuses around your strengths and what you are interested in.” “Don’t get flustered if you don’t know the answer to a brain teaser question, just work through g yyour thought g process out loud. It is much more important to hear what you are thinking than your answer.” “Have a structured and concise answer to, ‘Tell me about yourself’.” “Don’t get caught talking too fast during the interview. Try to speak slowly and calmly. Also, eye contact is important.” “BE YOURSELF.” 7 “Understand how a bank is structured and the key differences between what yyou can do in sales and trading versus investment banking so that you have a concrete thought on why you want this job over the others.” “When you think about the h skills k ll that h you have h that will help you do well in this job, have concrete examples of where you have displayed these skills before.” Resources Links and Descriptions Economic Releases Bloomberg • Incremental information • News/releases that can affect various markets or global regions • Manufacturing Orders • Factory Orders • Make note of recurring releases such as Initial Jobless Claims • Federal Reserve and unemployment releases are always important Earnings Releases Bloomberg • Specific to current release period Market Summary Bloomberg • Important metrics for understanding market performance • Useful for understanding dynamics between various different asset classes, geographical regions, etc. US Global Economic News WSJ • • • • NYT • ‘Front Front Page’ Page headlines • Business section • US/World section for other non-market related news Reuters • World section • Markets section • Business section Bloomberg • News/market sections • Market summaries/statistics Read the headlines Market section Note incremental information Summary statistics 8 Appendix Desk Descriptions - Credit Desk Description HG Credit Trading The High Grade Cash Trading team includes Flow Trading (cash and derivatives), Index Trading, Hybrid Trading, Esoterics Trading (Private Placements/Illiquids) and Yankee Trading (Int’l Credit). By partnering with Sales and Research, the High Grade Credit Trading Desk offers liquidity and the execution to institutional investors (insurance companies, money managers, & hedge funds) across the globe. The desk seeks to maximize the Firm’s return on capital while operating under preset balance sheet and credit parameters. Each trader focuses on specific sectors and makes markets which balance their core credit views with the demands of customer liquidity needs. needs Daily activities include buying and selling securities securities, providing market color and creating trade ideas. Important skills include risk management, strong analytic skills, and in depth knowledge of products, companies and sectors. HY Credit Trading High Yield Credit Trading includes cash and derivative trading of corporate issuers whose ratings fall below investment grade (BB+ or lower), as well as Index trading. High Yield trading works closely with Sales, Research, and Distressed and Loan counterparts to deliverer liquidity and best execution to qualified institutional investors and hedge funds across the globe. Traders focus on specific sectors and issuers. Daily activities include making markets that balance their core credit views with the demands of customer liquidity needs. needs In close effort with Sales and Credit Research, HY traders seek to maximize the Firm’s return on capital against preset balance sheet and credit parameters. High Yield traders have spent or will spend time in Research to fully understand credit analysis and fundamentals. Important skills include an understanding of credit analysis and risk management. Loan Trading The Loan Trading Desk focuses on the trading of higher yielding performing loans. Each trader focuses on specific sectors and makes markets which balance their core credit views with the demands of customer liquidity needs. The desk analyst performs the fundamental credit analysis on specific credits and develops actionable i investment t t ideas id for f both b th the th trading t di desk d k and d the th loan l accountt base. b By B partnering t i with ith Sales S l and d our dedicated team of research analysts, the Leveraged Loan trading desk offers liquidity, idea generation and best execution to a variety of loan market participants including Banks, Hedge Funds, CLOs, Mutual Funds and BDCs. Loan traders seek to maximize the Firm’s return on capital against preset balance sheet and credit parameters. Important skills include an in depth understanding of credit fundamentals, relative value, and strong analytic skills. Distressed Debt Trading Distressed Debt Trading includes cash and derivative trading of corporate issuers who are near term default candidates, dd currently l in bankruptcy b k or liquidation, l d or who h have h recently l resurfaced f d from f the h bankruptcy b k process as a reorganized company. The team works closely with our High Yield and Loan trading partners in Credit, often teaming up on specific issuers as credit stories evolve/become more volatile. By partnering with Sales and our dedicated team of desk analysts (non-publishing research), the Distressed Debt trading desk offers liquidity and best execution to qualified institutional investors and hedge funds across the globe. Traders operate in a variety of sectors and issuers, making markets that balance recovery and credit views with the demands of customer liquidity needs. Distressed traders seek to maximize the Firm’s return on capital against preset balance sheet and credit parameters. Important skills include an in depth understanding of credit fundamentals, relative value, and strong analytic l i skills. kill Credit Sales The US Credit Sales Group engages in transactions in investment grade and speculative grade corporate bonds, loans, and derivatives (credit default swaps, index, swaptions, etc). A sales person will focus on one of the aforementioned products, however will be rotated on several Sales desks during the internship. All Sales Teams works hand in hand with Trading, Syndicate, Strategy, and Research to deliver the Barclays Credit Franchise to clients. The credit salesperson is the main point of contact for clients and is responsible for managing client relationships. Daily activities include discussing trade ideas, digesting and explaining market trends, handling sensitive information, and helping to manage risk for the trading desk. Important skills include strong verbal and written communication skills, prioritization skills, and attention to detail. 9 Desk Descriptions - Credit Desk Description Latam Trading The Latam Trading Desk is the most active trading desk in Latin American debt and credit derivatives. The desk has 3 major components: Credit Derivatives, Corporate credit and Sovereign Credit. The focus of our New York desk on Latin America is driven primarily by an overlapping time zone. By partnering with Sales and Research, the Emerging Markets Credit Trading Desk offers investment ideas, market intelligence, liquidity and execution to qualified institutional investors (insurance companies, investment managers, banks, sovereign wealth funds & hedge funds) across the globe. The multinational nature of Emerging Markets adds a diverse range of specific macroeconomic factors and conditions to our business in addition to its primary credit component. component In the business, traders are normally divided by geography and/or sector. Primary CMBS (securitized products) The Primary CMBS group is involved in the origination, underwriting and securitization of commercial real estate loans. The group provides primarily fixed rate financing for stabilized properties for loan sizes ranging from $2MM to upwards of $500MM.The ultimate execution of the loans is via a capital markets exit whereby the bonds are rated by multiple NRSRO’s and are syndicated to both Investment Grade and High Yield investors. In addition to originating and underwriting loans for securitization with the firm’s capital, the group also acts as placement agent for various GSA entities and private label non-bank non bank financial issuers. issuers Securitized Products Sales (securitized products) The Securitized Products business provides clients with investment opportunities in Agency and Non-Agency Fixed Income instruments. These instruments are backed by cash flows from residential and commercial mortgages, credit cards, student loans and auto loans as well as a broad spectrum of esoteric cash flows. Securitization is the process of pooling cash flows and creating structures that match clients’ investment needs. Our dynamic product suite extends from highly liquid Agency pass-through securities to highly customized credit tranches. Securitized Products allow exposure to every facet of the Fixed Income markets including d ti duration, convexity, it and d credit dit risk. i k Securitized S iti d Products P d t investors i t include i l d Money M Managers, M Hedge H d Funds, F d Pension Funds, Banks, Insurance Companies, Government Agencies, and other Institutional Investors. Securitized Products Trading (Securitized Products) The Securitized Products group is involved in the securitization, marketing and trading of liabilities backed by a defined real asset. The assets underlying these deals encompass everything from commercial and residential real estate to consumer loan debt and more esoteric assets like aircraft and cell towers. The group sits directly between credit trading and interest rate trading in the menu of services Barclays Capital offers. ff Securitized d products d are traded d d in a wide d range off markets. k The h group makes k markets k in very liquid l d securities (e.g., Agency TBA MBS, a 1+ trillion USD market) and much more esoteric markets. The group also bids on loans directly from originators. The group structures assets to match the needs of a wide range of clients globally. The group also generates revenue trading existing securitized bonds between customers in the secondary market. The client base for this group is quite diverse but is predominantly made up of banks, money managers, insurance companies and hedge funds. Credit Research The Credit Research team analyzes corporate issuers across High Grade and High Yield. With a focus on specific sectors, analysts conduct fundamental research to identify credit investment opportunities across cash and derivatives markets. The research desk publishes investment views and formal bond ratings, working closely with Sales & Trading to deliver actionable trade ideas and content to institutional investors (including money managers, hedge funds, and insurance companies). Idea generation from the Credit Research team is a critical driver of trading flow in secondary markets. Analysts also work closely with Investment Banking and Syndicate, playing a critical role in performing due diligence on new issuers and bonds/loans in the primary market. Credit Research analysts must maintain strong communication skills (both verbal and written), deep knowledge of specific industries and companies, and an in-depth understanding of credit fundamentals, valuation, financial modeling and accounting, yield/spread analysis, and covenants. 10 Desk Descriptions - Credit Desk Description Municipal Trading The municipal bond market contains over $3.5 trillion of debt issued by over 80,000 issuers, across cities, states, and other municipal authorities and their agencies and instrumentalities. The business provides state, city and local governmental entities a pathway to raise funds for a variety of infrastructure projects, which include highways, schools, water projects, tunnels, buildings, hospitals, sewage plants, etc. Within cash trading, the team makes markets in high grade and high yield municipal securities, as traders focus either on specific sectors and/or issuers, or specialize in specific tenors and structures. Traders partner with Sales and Strategy to provide best execution to their clients and understand the credit and structural factors of municipal finance finance. Daily activities include buying and selling securities, providing market color, performing relative value and credit analysis, etc. Strong analytic skills, attention to detail and an understanding of risk management will be important in a municipal trading role. Municipal Sales The Municipal Sales team covers a wide range of clients and is the main point of customer contact for the full array of muni products offered by the Barclays Municipal Finance franchise. The team routinely collaborates with the Syndicate, Trading and Research groups to deliver comprehensive solutions and an in-depth understanding of the market to a variety of accounts seeking exposure to the tax tax-exempt exempt (and municipal taxable) space space. Daily activities include, among others, interacting with clients; researching municipal credits via ratings reports, bond documentation, and meetings with research analysts; meeting with underwriters and Public Finance bankers to get educated on new bond deals; monitoring interest rate markets to evaluate municipal asset class relative value, etc. Important skills include strong verbal and written communication, problem solving abilities and a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of fixed income markets. Municipal Derivatives The Municipal Derivatives team consists of trading and structuring. The team provides comprehensive services and d products d t for f municipal i i l investors i t and d issuers i to t enhance h their th i investment i t t returns, t minimize i i i their th i borrowing b i costs, and more effectively manage their assets and liabilities. Since being organized as the first integrated derivative products group in municipal finance, it has consistently been recognized by the industry for its innovation and client solutions. The Municipal Derivatives team works closely with Public Finance and Sales to deliver a wide variety of derivative solutions, such as swaps, swaptions, caps, floors, investment agreements and other products designed and customized for the financing and investment needs of its issuer clients and investor accounts. Strong interpersonal skills, demonstrated analytic abilities and a strong understanding of financial markets and fixed income will prove valuable in a municipal derivatives role. 11 Desk Descriptions – Macro Desk Description Commodities Sales The Barclays Commodities business has 4 offices around the world and strong market presence across the Americas, Europe and in the Asia Pacific, in addition to a team of over 50 dedicated front office professionals. The business is consistently ranked top 3 by many of the specialist surveys in the financial services industry and represents one of the strongest franchises in the market. Commodities is responsible for providing risk management, financing, and investor solutions on a range of commodities: from oil, gas, and precious metals. In addition to the full range of over over-the the counter (OTC) commodity products, products the team also works closely with the futures division who offer clients access to all the large commodities exchanges globally. Included under the Commodity Sales umbrella is the Commodity Investor Solutions team (CIS) who work with the sales force to provide innovative structured solutions for commodity investors. Barclays capital is one of the few full service commodity providers. Commodities deals globally with over 1,700 clients including but not limited to exploration and production companies, consumers, utilities, industrials, transportation, power producers, generating companies, government and institutional investors seeking to achieve or mitigate a particular risk/return exposure to government, commodities markets. In the US the commodities sales desks are divided into the following groups: E&P and Midstream Producers, Consumers/Industrials, Utilities and Institutional Clients, and Corporate Structuring. Commodities Trading The Energy Trading Desk manages all actively traded financial oil and natural gas derivatives. Our day to day activities include market-making, fundamental analysis, risk management and position taking across the energy sector primarily in crude oil, gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, NGLs, and natural gas. We trade a variety of exchange listed futures, options, and OTC swaps, as well as number of exotic and bespoke structures tailored to the specific needs of our counterparties counterparties. Traders are expected to manage the firm firm’ss risk and also work actively with the sales force to quote customer inquiries and generate new business. This role is designed to allow summer analysts to work side-by-side with the trading desk to learn about all sectors of the energy markets. Foreign Exchange (FX) Forwards Trading The foreign exchange (FX) market is the world’s largest securities market. Open 24 hours a day, 5 days a week, an estimated 5 trillion dollars worth of currency changes hands each session. Barclays is a market leader in FX. We provide global FX execution and risk management services to institutional clients, ranging from multinational corporations to the world’s largest hedge funds. The three FX trading desks – Spot (Voice/electronic), Forwards, & Options, are responsible for effectively managing and leveraging our business to maximize revenue for the firm. Foreign Exchange (FX) Options Trading The foreign exchange (FX) market is the world’s largest securities market. Open 24 hours a day, 5 days a week, an estimated 5 trillion dollars worth of currency changes hands each session. Barclays is a market leader in FX. We provide global FX execution and risk management services to institutional clients, ranging from multinational corporations to the world’s largest hedge funds. The trading desk is responsible for effectively managing and leveraging our business to maximize revenue for the firm. 12 Desk Descriptions – Macro Desk Description Foreign Exchange (FX) Sales-Voice Foreign exchange markets – 24-hour global market that trades over $5 trillion daily. The currency market is sensitive to a country’s equity markets, interest rates, bonds, commodities, political structure, and a multitude of other factors. With exposure to FX, one will have the opportunity to capture a complex set of interactions between macroeconomic, microeconomics, politics, trade, cross-border investment, market sentiment and technical trends. Barclays FX, operating primarily out of New York, London, and Singapore, covers all liquid currencies in both developed and emerging regions and interacts with a broad range of clients, including financial institutions, institutions Commodities Trading Advisors (CTAs), (CTAs) hedge funds funds, money managers, managers and multinational corporations. FX Sales is divided into 4 teams. Real Money, Leveraged Customers, Banks and Corporates. The Real Money team deals primarily with asset managers who has foreign exchange exposures from their holdings of international equities and fixed income. The Leveraged team deals with Hedge Funds and CTA’s. The Banks team covers banks who needs to lay of FX risk with large flow houses like Barclays. Finally the Corporate team deals with Multinational corporations who have foreign exchange needs from their export/import as well as overseas investments. Macro Structuring Barclays’ Macro Structuring business is a global leader, driving innovation and delivering tailored solutions to our clients on both the asset and liability side of the balance sheet across rates, commodities and foreign exchange. We use our extensive knowledge and expertise in OTC Derivatives, CVA, Funding and Capital to ensure that live trades are priced with relevant economics. Furthermore, we systematically identify opportunities and work on solutions to improve the bank’s credit/funding/capital positions. Our client base includes corporate clients, large financial institutions, money managers, pensions & endowments, hedge funds, and insurance companies as well as third party brokers and private banks. Our product suite is a combination of derivative based structures, index products (e (e.g. g complex beta Indices Indices, liquid alpha indices) as well as packaged investment products (structured notes, asset-side structured repos, custom derivatives) and financing products (ALM hedging, liability-side structured repos). We also help develop new policies, pricing tools and methodologies that help us better estimate and account for credit, funding and capital impacts, which is still a relatively novel concept in the financial industry. We interact daily with our partners in sales, trading, legal and structuring globally to help deliver our best ideas to our clients. Rates Options Trading The Interest Rates Vanilla Option trading desk makes markets in vanilla interest rate options including: Swaptions Caps/Floors, Swaptions, Caps/Floors Midcurves and Bond Options Options. In addition to providing prices and taking positions, positions we also develop option strategies that serve client needs. Because we deal with options, we use mathematical models on the desk when valuing these positions and quantifying risk. In addition to the vanilla option positions described above, the desk also takes positions in vanilla bonds, swaps and other products to hedge these positions The Structured Rates desk makes markets in complex derivatives that do not trade liquidly in vanilla markets and manages the associated higher order risks. Because of the complicated risk we deal in we are heavy users of financial models. In spite of the quantitative bent, we still take positions in vanilla bonds, swaps and options, and express views on the market like every other trading desk desk. Exotic products vary widely in their focus and complexity: ranging from callable swaps to options paying out on the slope of the curve. Clients vary widely as well, from insurance companies, corporates, hedges funds, and private wealth managers 13 Desk Descriptions – Macro Desk Description Rates Sales The Rates business is a client-facing business that facilitates transactions of the full suite of interest rate products to the firm’s institutional accounts. The business’s client base is global and includes financial institutions, money managers, central banks, pension & insurance funds, and hedge funds of all types of strategies. Our product suite is a combination of high-volume flow transactions (e.g. interest rate swaps, government bonds, inflation products, supra-sovereign and agency debt, & futures) as well as bespoke investments (e.g. index products, structured notes, options, & exotic derivatives). The global rates market is a highly dynamic space that is closely tied to fiscal and monetary policy as well as global macroeconomic events. events Our business is a recognized market leader and ranks among top tier globally. Rates, US Agencies, Swaps & Treasuries Trading As a leading US Rates Trading franchise, Barclays facilitates client flow across a wide range of products including US Treasuries, US Agencies, and Interest Rate Swaps. Our clients consist of central banks, pension funds/realmoney funds, insurance companies, hedge funds, corporations, mortgage servicers, and GSEs that wish to hedge interest rate exposure or speculate on the market. The business is in regular contact with both our sales force and our client franchise, showing axes, providing color, etc. The desk generates revenue via capturing bid-offer spread from client trades and positioning the portfolio to take advantage of moves in duration, duration curve, curve spreads, spreads etc. eFICC Sales Barclays is an established leader in electronic delivery of fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) products. Through our award-winning electronic product offering, BARX, and our best-in-class sales and relationship management approach and organization, we have built a top tier electronic market position, evidenced by our #1 market share in U.S. Treasuries (Bloomberg) and top 3 position in FX (Euromoney). Our eFICC Distribution team comprises two main product specialist teams – fixed income and foreign exchange, augmented t d by b our BARX Cli Clientt Intelligence I t lli team, t whose h aim i is i to t optimize ti i delivery d li through th h targeted t t d data-driven d t di marketing and client outreach. The objective of eFICC Distribution (aka ‘BARX Sales’) is to maximize revenue production via electronic channels, with the aim of driving the overall revenue, market share and delivery efficiency of our FICC businesses. Wherever possible, we work together across asset classes to maximize client penetration and ensure consistency of delivery to clients. The team operates as an integrated extension of the core Rates Sales and FX Sales teams, to ensure that clients receive a seamless offering across voice and electronic channels. 14 Desk Descriptions – Equities Desk Description Institutional Sales Institutional Sales is the key interface between Barclays and the client. They provide clients with access to analysts, companies and conferences. Their goal is to help increase the amount that clients choose to execute with our cash desks and use Barclays’ products and services (i.e electronic trading platforms, derivatives, convertibles, Prime etc.) by leveraging the intellectual capital that Barclays has to offer. In this role it is important for the sales people to know their clients very well and have a strong working relationship with Barclays’ analysts, traders and product specialists so that opportunities to connect clients with our offerings can be monetized. Cash SalesTrading The cash sales-traders help facilitate institutional “buy side” clients when they want to buy or sell cash equities. They act as execution consultants in delivering the products and services from our offering. They work together with the trading desk in delivering best practices. While they can trade agency orders themselves, they do not have PnL or a trading book and must go to the traders for capital/risk situations. Their aim is to manage the relationship with clients that they cover and offer them best execution & content. To be best in class, the salestraders must know their clients well, and also have a strong understanding of the execution capabilities we have to offer. offer Cash Trading The cash trading desk is a single-stock trading desk organized by sector. The desk executes equities transactions on behalf of clients by either connecting buyer or seller or, when deemed appropriate, posing as counterparty for the transaction. Traders are responsible for “owning” their respective sectors and being the authority on everything going on inside their world. Chief concerns of a trader on the desk include risk management, client relationships, and sector expertise. Equities Options Sales-Trading The h equities options sales-traders l d h have a similar l role l to the h cash h sales-traders, l d but b they h work k with h investors who h are looking to trade derivatives. Derivatives add a layer of risk (volatility) on top of regular single-stock trades. They work with clients to create trading strategies specific to the client’s view on stocks/the market both directionally and in terms of volatility, often times centered around events such as company earnings or macro economic data points. They manage client relationships, develop trade ideas, filter relevant information and help facilitate best execution for clients. They also work closely with the cash sales-traders and traders and other groups across the floor. E i i Options Equities O i Trading The Options Trading Desk focuses on the execution of hedging strategies. This includes trading responsibilities around listed options (i.e calls and puts) and structured flow products (i.e variance swaps, options on variance). Similar to cash trading they provide clients with liquidity and helping clients gain perspective on market sentiment, availability of flow and strategies to enter and exit positions. Additionally it is important for traders to manage the ongoing risk resulting from providing customer liquidity. 15 Desk Descriptions – Equities Desk Description Special Situations Sales The Special Situations Sales desk is a client-facing desk that looks to bring value to clients with original trade ideas and timely insight. Special Situations Sales assists clients who invest in risk arbitrage strategies or other special situations including corporate takeovers, exchange offers, activist campaigns, and post-reorg/bankruptcy names. They work with clients to come up with trade ideas during and around these events. This group has elements of cash, volatility, convertibles, and index/programs, so they work closely with colleagues across the trading floor. Special Situations Trading Special Situations Trading works closely with the sales team in forming trade ideas for clients and then executing those trades for clients. In order to express the views that a client has in special situations and risk arbitrage opportunities, the team trades a broad range of products including risk arbitrage spreads, cash equities, listed options, structured products, swaps, preferreds, straight bonds, convertible bonds, and index/programs all as part of the business. Program Sales Program Sales primarily focuses on baskets of securities that are traded as a part of a rebalance, index event or t transition iti off any kind. ki d The Th common indexes i d include i l d the th S&P, S&P th the Russell, R ll and d the th MSCI. MSCI They Th mustt provide id analysis and perspectives on index and liquidity events that take place and help their clients to trade orders as intelligently as possible. Overall responsibilities include executing orders, educating clients, assisting with pre and post trade analytics, distributing content, and providing market insight. Electronic Sales Electronic trading is a dynamic technology driven business which has become a growing part of the equity landscape for the past decade. In many of the world’s stock markets, nearly all trading is now conducted by computers and process driven trading. Electronic Sales is client facing, focusing on driving revenue through client adoption and use of electronic equity products, including equity trading algorithms, order routing, transaction cost analysis and execution consulting. Electronic Sales must prospect, pitch and cultivate new electronic business in partnership with other client facing teams. Electronic SalesTrading The Electronic Sales-Trading team provides product knowledge, market information and execution consultation to clients using our suite of electronic trading products. They must work closely with the Electronic Product team to provide insights and suggest enhancements to our electronic trading strategies based on client feedback. It is important that they partner with other client facing teams in an effort to build strong relationships and drive an optimal client outcome. Electronic Trading Product Development Technology has dramatically advanced the trading of financial instruments. The Electronic Trading Product Development team must work with sales, trading and technology to bring innovative and market leading products such as algorithms, smart order routing, analytics and dark pools to market for the firm and its clients. This team is creating products across the equities and options business at Barclays. Cli t Strategy Client St t Client strategy’s mission is to identify key revenue opportunities for global equities and align the organization to monetize client relationships within equities and throughout capital markets. In order to ensure optimal relationships it is imperative to understand/know the firm’s client universe and what clients value. 16 Desk Descriptions – Equities Desk Description Convertible Sales The convertible sales and trading desk works with a structured asset which involves an equity component as part of its structure but also involves corporate bonds, and options. The products that the team works with are convertible bonds, preferreds, and mandatories. The convertible sales team must maintain and improve relationships with clients by pitching ideas, and coordinating with the convertible trading team to execute trades. They must manage the dynamic between clients and the execution capabilities of the trading side. Convertible Trading The C Th Convertible tibl T Trading di tteam iis responsible ibl for f sending di outt markets k t daily, d il managing i the th capital it l and d liquidity li idit risk i k that comes with being a market maker and identifying and creating profitable trading situations. The team works in an Over the Counter market as opposed to a listed market like the cash trading team. It is important for the sales and trading team to work in tandem with one another to provide liquidity to convertible investors in secondary market trading. Equity and Fund Structured (EFS) Solutions Sales EFS Solutions Sales is a cross-asset, solutions driven desk that provides innovative product solutions tailored to specific client needs. Products include ETNs, ETFs, custom and listed indexes, structured notes and derivatives including vanilla options and variance swaps. Despite disparate client needs, each group works very closely with each other, the product origination group and with structuring, creating a cohesive and goal-oriented team. In addition to Equity linked products, the team provides origination and distribution of Commodity, Rates, FX and Credit linked solutions as well. Equity and Fund Structured (EFS) Trading The EFS Structured Trading desk looks to design and deliver solutions to clients that utilize different types of derivative structures on equities, funds and hybrid underlyings across client types. They are also actively involved g views and trade ideas with other trading g desks on the equity q y floor. in communicating Equity Syndicate The Equity Syndicate desk is the “Execution Arm” of Equity Capital Markets and facilitates capital raising needs for the Firm's corporate clients. The team is responsible for the marketing and execution process of new equity issuances, including IPOs, Follow-ons, Block Trades, and Convertibles. The Syndicate desk is involved with new equity offerings throughout the entire process, and is primarily responsible for pricing, allocation, and aftermarket stabilization. The syndicate desk is the middle man in communicating launched deals coming from the private side with the trading floor (public side of the investment bank). Ultimately, equity syndicate is responsible for issuing those shares into the market to be publicly traded for investors. investors Equity Research Global Equity Research provides the financial and strategic advice necessary for successful asset management. The Equity Research group is dedicated to providing insightful analysis of global stock markets and companies. Research analysts build and maintain financial models and author research reports evaluating companies and market segments. They interact with company management teams, institutional investor clients and internal partners. Our clients rely on our Research analysts for their expertise and perspective to make investment decisions. We have retained our Top 5 position in Institutional Investors All-America Research Team S Survey ffor th the last l t 14 years. Equities Marketing The Equities Marketing team is responsible for helping position Barclays as a top-tier investment bank by strategically marketing the strengths and achievements of the Equities and Prime businesses globally. The team partners with senior leadership and different product and service groups across Sales, Trading, and Research to articulate and communicate business strategy, develop differentiated value propositions, and create and implement strategic marketing plans. The team develops specialized content such as presentations, thought leadership, client communications, and product teach-ins. 17 Desk Descriptions – Prime Desk Description Equity Financing The Equity Financing desk’s primary function is lending securities and providing global borrow and short color along with providing leverage/cash to our clients and the firm. Our business is extremely competitive which requires us to be faster, smarter, wiser, and more creative than our competitors. It is our job to build and enhance relationships with our clients so we can effectively source required securities at favorable prices and provide unique financing solutions to our clients. Synthetic Sales Synthetic Sales desk’s provides long and/or short exposure through various products including Index Swaps, Customized Index Baskets, Sector Swaps, Single Stock Swaps, Futures, Participatory Notes, Certificates, EFP, EFRP, Portfolio Swaps, and CFD’s. The desk operates in global developed and emerging markets. Securities Lending The Securities Lending Sales team covers our institutional Agent Lending, Custodian, Insurance, and BrokerSales Dealer clients who lend portfolios of securities either on a principal or agency basis. These clients are an extremely l important part off our business b as they h collectively ll l hold h ld the h largest l pooll off securities lending l d liquidity l d available to the marketplace (500 institutional lending accounts with several trillion USD supply). Desk Descriptions p – Public Finance Desk Description Public Finance The Public Finance team is dedicated to providing comprehensive investment banking and capital markets solutions to public sector clients. Covering state and local governments, public authorities, health care systems, universities and other not-forprofit organizations, the Public Finance team helps clients with their complex financial needs. Relative to other investment banking roles, Public Finance stands out for its great diversity of clients and products, ranging from traditional municipal bonds, variable rate securities, private placements, balance sheet products (such as letters of credit, liquidity agreements, various loan structures), derivatives, and many more. The team’s commitment to its clients has contributed to exciting public benefit projects, by helping to finance higher education expansions, infrastructure development, clean power generation, transportation upgrades and others. Important skills include strong written and verbal communication, intellectual curiosity, creativity and the ability to multitask. 18 Desk Descriptions – Client Capital Management Desk Description Client Solutions Desk The Client Solutions Desk (CSD) is a multi-asset-class (mostly Rates, FX and Commodities) trading desk that faces Barclays Macro clients for uncollateralized trades. CSD will price for risks associated with uncollateralized business (Credit Risk, Funding Risk and Capital consumption) and provide an all in price to be sent to the client. Additionally, CSD will be in charge of actively monitoring, forecasting and managing Capital on its portfolio of trades Fixed Income Finance Trading The Global Fixed Income financing sales/trading desk provides secured financing to institutional clients collateralized by G10 Sovereigns/Supras, Covered bonds, Corporate Credit Bonds, Emerging Market Bonds, and Securitized Products. The group’s primary function is to provide leverage to a well established client franchise by lending cash or securities – either through a repurchase trade or margin lending agreement. The analyst will have experience in understanding different funding markets and how hedge funds employ leverage to enhance their returns. We have consistently been ranked within the Top 2 amongst our competitors, with both wide asset class and client coverage. The global desk has both fast-paced “flow-based” trading, with ability to multi-task and respond to client inquiries in a short amount of time time. It also has elements which are more analytically intensive with a focus on credit risk and asset structures. The desk plays a critical role in enabling Hedge funds and other asset managers to employ levered strategies, short the market, and cash management. The client base consists of large hedge funds, asset managers, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, securities lenders, insurance companies, and banks. The desk generates revenue by taking market risk, liquidity risk, and counterparty credit risk. The desk works closely with other capital market businesses both primary and secondary, as well as, the firm’s treasury and liquidity management teams. Client Capital Management Cli t Capital Client C it l Management M t (CCM) iis responsible ibl ffor th the managementt off C Capital it l and dB Balance l sheet h t across multiple product classes to ensure appropriate returns for our shareholders whilst continuing to deliver for our clients. Within CCM the Institutional Portfolio Management desk owns a holistic and informed view of capital, returns, profitability and underlying drivers of the Investment Bank. The outputs of the desk are used for strategic client and business decisions by senior management within the IB. Institutional Portfolio Management Client Capital Management (CCM) is responsible for the management of Capital and Balance sheet across multiple l l product d classes l to ensure appropriate returns for f our shareholders h h ld whilst h l continuing to deliver d l for f our clients. Within CCM the Institutional Portfolio Management desk owns a holistic and informed view of capital, returns, profitability and underlying drivers of the Investment Bank. The outputs of the desk are used for strategic client and business decisions by senior management within the IB. 19 Desk Descriptions – Treasury Desk Description Strategic Transactions Group The Strategic Transactions Group is a structured finance business within Barclays primarily focusing on client and Treasury flow business. The business facilitates and executes transactions with clients, being primarily financial institutions, in respect of multiple asset classes including fixed income, commodities and foreign exchange as well as across multiple jurisdictions including Europe, the Americas and Asia. The business has professionals based in London, New York, Luxembourg and Singapore. Treasury Funding and Investments Barclays Treasury is responsible for ensuring the stability and safety of the bank by optimizing its use of scarce liquidity, capital and balance sheet resources. The Treasury Funding and Investments team is a trading desk responsible for:  Raising liquidity (money) for Barclays and lending it to Barclays’ businesses;  Managing Barclays’ liquidity portfolio (a buffer of liquid assets to help Barclays withstand any market shocks);  Risk management of risks associated with these activities (such as interest rate and currency risk). The team transacts in a range of products, including Fixed Income, Money Market and FX products. As an intern you will start to build an understanding of both the funding and the investment process and the many factors a Treasury trader takes into account when making a decision. Desk Descriptions - Distribution Desk Description Cross-Asset Client The Client Strategy team drives Barclays approach to maximizing profitability and returns across our global client Strategy franchise. The team delivers positive outcomes for both our chosen clients and the firm by balancing client potential and resource demand with scarce resources. Our strategic objectives include: • • • • Defining rigorous criteria around the clients we want to serve Establishing dynamic understanding of client needs Aligning capital and resource allocation with what clients value and our strategic objectives Implementing systematic tracking and follow-up on outcomes for clients and firm 20 ©2015 Barclays Bank PLC. All rights reserved. Barclays is a trademark of Barclays Bank PLC. All other trademarks and service marks are the property, and used with the permission, of their respective owners. Barclays is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer M/F/Disability/Veteran. Interview Questions for Barclays Junior Success Program 1. Do you think the stock market is efficient? 2. What newspapers/publications do you read? Tell me about an interesting article you read today 3. What is going on in the economy today? Where is it going and why? 4. How has the U.S. stock market performed YTD and what are the factors that are driving it higher or bringing it down? What are your thoughts on how 2015 pans out? 5. What are the Dow Jones Industrial Average, NASDAQ, S&P 500? How do they work? 6. What do you think about gold as an asset class? 7. Where is the 10-year rate headed? 8. Where do you see interest rates going and why? 9. What is the relationship between interest rates and exchange rates? 10. How would you invest 1 million dollars? 11. Why are you passionate about the markets? 12. Why are you interested in Sales and Trading? 13. Tell me what a trader does. 14. Why do you want to work at Barclays? (List some positive qualities about Barclays) 15. What are the factors that differentiate our firm from the other bulge bracket banks? 16. Research Barclays, recent industry and market related news that could prove helpful in the interview to talk about. 17. Which division(s)and sub-division(s) of Barcalys would someone with an applied math and economics background be most suited to pursue? About Me - Applied math and economics double major with 3.95 GPA - Applied to Barclays’ program for diversity because I’m black, gay, and mentally disabled (bipolar disorder)
Purchase answer to see full attachment