FT Editor’s Charts Quiz Reveals Sell-Side Design Preferences
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A recent quiz hosted by the Financial Times’ Editor, Roula Khalaf, tested participants’ ability to identify investment research reports by their chart design, highlighting a surprising bias and the challenges of navigating the world of sell-side analysis.
The end-of-year quiz, designed to obscure a lack of data visualization skills, presented oblique snapshots of a dozen investment research reports, challenging readers to pinpoint the originating bank, consultancy, or investment manager. The exercise revealed that identifying the source of these charts is a skill honed by those deeply immersed in the financial industry – particularly those on the buyside – who are constantly bombarded with research.
“This was admittedly a challenge that favoured buyside readers,” the FT noted, “who are subjected to a violent unending torrent of research and therefore often have a…complicated relationship with the sell-side.” The most difficult reports to identify originated from smaller firms in countries like Norway and France.
Here’s a breakdown of the quiz solutions:
Decoding the Charts: Key Findings
Deutsche Bank produced Chart 1, while Chart 2 was identified as originating from Bank of America. A particularly challenging “cruel Norwegian curve ball” – Chart 3 – was correctly attributed to DNB Carnegie by only two entrants. Chart 4 initially fooled many, with guesses leaning towards Standard Chartered, but was ultimately traced back to BNP Paribas.
The quiz also revealed some predictable successes. Charts 5 and 6 were universally recognized as being from Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, respectively. However, Chart 7, despite TS Lombard’s strong reputation for sell-side design, proved elusive for most participants.
US Bank Bias and Asset Manager Aesthetics
The quiz also highlighted a clear preference for US financial institutions. Chart 8 was attributed to Nomura, playfully described as “eight Nomura’s Nomuraing.” Chart 9 featured a report from BlackRock, prompting one entrant to quip, “they must be colour blind over there,” leading to a tongue-in-cheek offer from the FT to license their design services for a mere 1 basis point of BlackRock’s IBIT fee revenue.
Morgan Stanley (Chart 10) and Barclays (Chart 11) were also readily identified, reinforcing the apparent “big US bank bias” among participants. Finally, Chart 12 was correctly identified as coming from the team at ARK Investment Management, though its upside-down orientation was explained as a piece of “recondite Alphaville lore.”
Santiago Crowned Quiz Champion
All guesses within the top decile were entered into a raffle, with Santiago ultimately named the winner, beating out serial charts quiz victor Anthony Cheng. The decision, made via a “Wheel of Names,” was reportedly influenced by concerns about the potential strain on the US Postal Service from shipping multiple winner’s tees to Mr. Cheng.
Congratulations to Santiago, and a happy New Year to all who participated. A new, conventional charts quiz is scheduled to launch on Friday.
