The simulation provided an excellent, highly realistic overview of rate desk operations and risk management. Structuring trade pitches for an MD while simultaneously evaluating offsetting client hedges—such as managing basis risk between IRS, Treasuries, and FOMC meeting swaps—closely mirrors the daily analytical workflow of a sell-side global markets analyst.

Learning about the practical roles that come with the simulation. I liked that some of the tasks didn't go too far on definitions and financial jargon, leaving me to have to research and learn more about certain things on my own, in turn expanding my knowledge of markets and trading as a whole, being something I value highly.

The four tasks build one continuous thread - the FOMC preview sets up the weekly recap, the recap forces a market view, the view drives the trade pitch, and the hedging task then tests whether you understand the risk of what you just recommended. Being handed raw price data and an anonymised client flow log rather than a summary was the most realistic part.