Kotak Mahindra Bank Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process
Real candidates share what happened, how many rounds they had,
and how the experience turned out.
Based on 45 interview experiences · FREE TO READ
Candidate interview experiences
First-hand accounts from people who interviewed at Kotak Mahindra Bank.
Kotak Mahindra Bank
Software Engineer
Entry Easy Positive experience No offer 1 round
Interview process
Technical screen
Interview formats
Technical Coding
The interview was pretty straightforward, mostly checking my programming skills and how I solve problems. They dug into my Java knowledge, especially Collections stuff like the different classes and how they work internally. Also asked about SQL, like making queries, joins, and making them run faster. They threw in some hard logic puzzles too, to see how I think things through. It was a professional interview, all about my tech skills and logic.
Confirmed questions5 questions
- Can you explain the differences between ArrayList and LinkedList in Java's Util package?
- Tell me about the Java Collections framework and its API.
- What are the use cases and internal workings of various Java collection classes?
Kotak Mahindra Bank
Software Engineer
Mid Average Negative experience No offer 5 rounds
Interview process
Technical screen Technical screen Technical screen Technical screen Recruiter call
Interview formats
Coding System Design Technical Behavioral
So I interviewed for a Software Engineer 3 position at Kotak. It took about 2 months in total, with 5 rounds, which I felt was a complete waste of time. The interview rounds were confusing - the HR person mentioned it would be a coding round, but the panel ended up asking High-Level Design (HLD) questions. Then, a round that was supposed to be HLD turned into random Core Java and Spring questions. After I passed all the interview stages, I had a final HR discussion about the salary. I sent in my documents and kept checking in for weeks. After waiting for 3 weeks, the HR informed me that they couldn't offer me the SE3 role and instead proposed an SE2 position with a lower salary. I found this lack of professionalism and respect for my time really disappointing. My advice is to avoid Kotak if you don't want a frustrating, unpredictable, and unfair hiring experience.
Confirmed questions5 questions
- The Bar Raiser round asked about the BattleShip game.
- The second round was supposed to be coding, but they asked HLD.
- The third round was intended for LLD, but they covered both LLD and HLD.
Kotak Mahindra Bank
Senior Software Engineer
Senior Average Neutral experience No offer 1 round
Interview process
Technical screen
Interview formats
Coding System Design
First round was with a third-party company, the Bar Raiser. It was a Machine Coding round where I had to code a battleship game. I was given the requirements for the game, and in the last 30 minutes, we discussed APIs, databases, and design patterns.
Confirmed questions8 questions
- Could you design and implement a battleship game where two players compete until one wins?
- The game board is an NxN grid, with N taken as input. Can you implement this?
- The NxN board is split in half: Player A gets NxN/2, and Player B gets the other NxN/2. How would you manage this division?
Kotak Mahindra Bank Software Engineer Interview Questions
Quoted word for word from Kotak Mahindra Bank interview reports.
“Implement the initGame(N) API to initialize an NxN battlefield, assigning the left half to Player A and the right half to Player B.”
Read reports →“Implement the addShip(id, size, x_A, y_A, x_B, y_B) API to add ships to both players' fleets at specified coordinates.”
Read reports →“How would you solve the BFS-based reachability in a binary string problem?”
Read reports →“Implement the startGame() API to start the game, with Player A always going first. Ensure all outputs are clearly printed.”
Read reports →“What is the difference between Primitive vs Reference data types in Java?”
Read report →“The game ends when a player loses all their ships. Can you implement the win/loss condition?”
Read report →“Missiles cannot be fired at the same coordinates twice. How would you prevent this?”
Read report →“The game board is an NxN grid, with N taken as input. Can you implement this?”
Read report →“Both players must have the same fleet size. How would you ensure this?”
Read report →Formats, difficulty and experience
Across all 45 Kotak Mahindra Bank interview reports.