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Quizzes > Business & Finance

Banking Trivia Questions and Answers: Test Your Money Smarts

Quick, free quiz on finance trivia questions. Instant results.

Editorial: Review CompletedCreated By: Kenny YangUpdated Aug 28, 2025
Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper cut coins bills question marks and quiz icons on sky blue background for free banking trivia quiz

This quiz helps you test your banking trivia and learn key facts about accounts, credit, and loans. Answer quick questions and see instant results with brief tips. For more practice, try banking trivia, explore finance trivia questions, or check your skills with a banking knowledge test.

What does FDIC stand for?
Federal Debt Investment Council
Federal Deposit Investment Corporation
Federal Debt Insurance Commission
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
The FDIC was created in 1933 in response to bank failures during the Great Depression to protect depositors by insuring bank deposits. It stands for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. FDIC insurance covers up to specified limits per depositor, per insured bank.
Which of the following is the primary tool used by the Federal Reserve to control the money supply?
Open market operations
Margin requirements
Discount rate adjustments
Reserve requirement adjustments
Open market operations, the buying and selling of government securities, are the Fed's most frequently used tool to regulate the money supply and influence short-term interest rates. Adjusting reserve requirements and the discount rate are also tools but are used less often. Open market operations offer the Fed flexibility and immediacy in policy implementation.
What is the term for the interest rate that commercial banks charge each other for overnight loans?
Discount rate
LIBOR
Federal funds rate
Prime rate
The federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions lend reserve balances to each other overnight. It is a key benchmark for other interest rates in the economy. The Federal Open Market Committee sets a target for this rate as part of monetary policy.
Which type of bank account typically offers the highest liquidity for depositors?
Checking account
Money market account
Savings account
Certificate of deposit
Checking accounts provide depositors with unrestricted access to funds through checks, debit cards, and withdrawals, making them the most liquid type of deposit account. Savings accounts generally limit transactions to encourage saving, while CDs lock up funds for a fixed term. Money market accounts offer check-writing privileges but often require higher minimum balances.
What does APR stand for in consumer finance?
Annual Payment Ratio
Annual Percentage Rate
Annual Principal Rate
Actual Percentage Return
APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate and reflects the annual cost of borrowing, including interest and certain fees. It provides consumers a standardized measure to compare loan and credit offers. Higher APRs indicate more costly borrowing over a year.
What is the main purpose of minimum reserve requirements imposed by central banks?
Control fiscal policy
Ensure banks hold a portion of deposits as reserves
Set credit standards
Insure customer deposits
Reserve requirements mandate that banks keep a fraction of customer deposits in reserve, which helps ensure liquidity and protect against bank runs. This tool is part of monetary policy to influence lending capacity. It is distinct from deposit insurance, which is managed by agencies like the FDIC.
Basel III introduced a minimum Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital ratio of what percentage?
6%
2.5%
8%
4.5%
Under Basel III, banks must hold a minimum CET1 capital ratio of 4.5% of risk-weighted assets to strengthen their resilience. CET1 is the highest quality capital comprised mainly of common stock and retained earnings. Higher buffers are recommended on top of this minimum in stress periods.
Which US federal law requires lenders to clearly disclose loan terms, including interest rates and fees, to borrowers?
Truth in Lending Act
Dodd-Frank Act
Sarbanes-Oxley Act
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) mandates disclosure of credit terms and costs so consumers can compare loan products. It standardizes APR calculation and ensures transparency. TILA is implemented by Regulation Z enforced by the CFPB.
What is the name of the annual stress test conducted by the Federal Reserve on large US banks?
Quantitative Easing Assessment
Federal Reserve Supervisory Stress Test
Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR)
Dodd-Frank Act Stress Test (DFAST)
The Dodd-Frank Act Stress Test (DFAST) is conducted annually to assess large bank resilience under hypothetical adverse economic scenarios. It evaluates capital adequacy and forward-looking capital planning. While CCAR covers capital plans and dividends, DFAST focuses on stress outcomes.
What is a callable bond?
A bond whose coupon rate is variable
A bond that the issuer can redeem before maturity
A bond that the investor can sell back at par
A bond with a call option granted to investors
A callable bond gives the issuer the right to repay the principal before the scheduled maturity date, usually at a premium. This feature benefits issuers when interest rates fall, allowing refinancing at lower rates. Investors typically demand higher yields to compensate for call risk.
Which of the following is a key difference between a savings account and a money market account?
Money market accounts typically offer check-writing privileges and higher interest rates
Money market accounts have no minimum balance requirements
Savings accounts allow unlimited withdrawals
Savings accounts offer tiered interest rates
Money market accounts often provide check-writing and debit card privileges while offering higher yields than typical savings accounts. They also tend to require higher minimum balances. Savings accounts limit certain transactions to encourage saving and typically offer lower rates.
Which type of risk arises from changes in market interest rates affecting the value of fixed-income securities?
Operational risk
Interest rate risk
Liquidity risk
Default risk
Interest rate risk is the exposure of fixed-income securities to changes in market interest rates. When rates rise, bond prices fall, and vice versa. This risk is a primary concern for bond investors and portfolio managers.
What does the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) measure for banks?
Capital adequacy against credit losses
Leverage ratio
Return on assets
Ability to withstand a 30-day liquidity stress
The LCR requires banks to hold sufficient high-quality liquid assets to cover net cash outflows during a 30-day stress scenario. It ensures institutions can meet short-term obligations under duress. The framework was introduced under Basel III to bolster bank resilience.
In a securitization structure, what is the topmost tranche called?
Mezzanine tranche
Subordinated tranche
Senior tranche
Equity tranche
The senior tranche in securitization has the highest priority claim on cash flows and typically receives lower yields due to lower risk. Mezzanine and equity tranches absorb losses first and offer higher returns. Senior tranches are rated investment grade.
What is a credit default swap (CDS) primarily used for in banking?
Hedging interest rate risk
Exchanging currencies
Transferring credit risk from one party to another
Insuring customer deposits
A credit default swap is a derivative contract that enables an investor to mitigate or transfer the credit risk of a reference entity to another party. The buyer of protection pays premiums and receives compensation if a credit event occurs. CDS are widely used for hedging or speculative strategies.
The Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) requires banks to maintain a stable funding profile over a time horizon of at least:
1 year
2 years
3 months
6 months
The NSFR is designed to promote resilience over a one-year horizon by requiring banks to fund their activities with sufficiently stable sources. It complements the Liquidity Coverage Ratio by focusing on longer-term stability. This standard was phased in under Basel III guidelines.
What is the primary purpose of the repurchase agreement (repo) market?
Underwriting new bond issues
Providing short-term collateralized borrowing and lending
Facilitating equity trades
Managing foreign exchange reserves
Repos are agreements where one party sells securities and agrees to repurchase them at a future date and predetermined price. They provide liquidity and collateralized short-term funding to financial institutions. The repo market is critical for central bank open market operations.
The Tier 1 capital ratio measures a bank's core equity capital against its risk-weighted assets. What is its primary significance?
It determines deposit insurance premiums
It indicates the bank's financial strength and ability to absorb losses
It measures liquidity under stress
It sets dividend payout levels
The Tier 1 capital ratio shows how well a bank can withstand financial distress by comparing its highest-quality capital to risk-weighted assets. Regulators use it to ensure banks maintain sufficient loss-absorbing buffers. Higher ratios indicate stronger capital adequacy.
In asset-liability management, what is gap analysis primarily used to assess?
Operational risk exposures
Mismatch between interest-sensitive assets and liabilities over a given time period
Credit quality of the loan portfolio
Leverage ratio
Gap analysis measures the sensitivity of a bank's earnings to changes in interest rates by comparing rate-sensitive assets and liabilities. A positive or negative gap indicates potential exposure to rising or falling rates. It is a key tool in interest rate risk management.
Which financial model is most commonly used for pricing European-style options?
Monte Carlo simulation
Black-Scholes model
Capital Asset Pricing Model
Binomial interest rate tree
The Black-Scholes model provides a closed-form solution for pricing European options based on assumptions like lognormal asset price distribution and constant volatility. It remains the benchmark in financial engineering. Monte Carlo methods and binomial trees are alternatives for more complex derivatives.
What is the Fundamental Review of the Trading Book (FRTB) primarily focused on revising in banking regulation?
Operational risk management
Market risk framework
Liquidity requirements
Credit risk capital rules
The FRTB, issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, overhauls the market risk capital framework for trading book exposures. It introduces more risk-sensitive measures and stricter boundary definitions between banking and trading books. FRTB aims to address limitations exposed during the financial crisis.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Understand Banking Trivia Basics -

    Grasp essential banking trivia concepts such as deposit types, interest rates, and account structures to build a solid finance foundation.

  2. Analyze Finance Trivia Questions -

    Break down quiz prompts to identify underlying finance principles and improve your accuracy on banking and finance quiz questions.

  3. Recall Historical Finance Facts -

    Remember key events and milestones in finance history that have shaped modern banking and financial systems.

  4. Differentiate Banking and Finance Quiz Topics -

    Recognize the distinctions between basic banking operations and broader financial theories to focus your learning effectively.

  5. Apply Critical Thinking to Finance Trivia -

    Use logical reasoning and problem-solving skills to tackle challenging finance trivia and financial knowledge quiz items.

  6. Evaluate Your Financial Knowledge -

    Assess your performance in the quiz to pinpoint strengths and areas for growth in your finance IQ.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Time Value of Money (TVM) Basics -

    Understanding TVM is key for both banking trivia and finance trivia, as it underpins net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR) calculations. Use PV = FV / (1 + r)^n to discount future cash flows, where r is the rate per period and n is the number of periods (source: Investopedia).

  2. Money Multiplier and Reserve Ratio -

    The money multiplier formula, MM = 1 / reserve ratio (rr), shows how banks amplify deposits into loans, a staple of any banking and finance quiz. For example, if rr = 10%, MM = 10, meaning $1,000 in reserves can support $10,000 in deposits (Federal Reserve).

  3. Central Bank Policy Tools -

    Central banks use open market operations, discount rate changes, and reserve requirements to steer the economy - common topics in finance questions. Remember: OMOs buy securities to inject liquidity and sell to absorb it, as detailed by the IMF.

  4. Key Banking Ratios - CAR & LDR -

    The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) and Loan-to-Deposit Ratio (LDR) gauge a bank's stability; CAR = (Tier 1 + Tier 2 capital) / risk-weighted assets ≥ 8% per Basel III guidelines. LDR = total loans ÷ total deposits; a healthy range of 80 - 90% is often cited by the Bank for International Settlements.

  5. 5 C's of Credit -

    Master the 5 C's - Character, Capacity, Capital, Collateral, Conditions - with the mnemonic "Can Cats Capture Cute Critters?" This framework helps assess borrower risk in financial knowledge quizzes and real-world credit analysis (source: Moody's).

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