Glossary / Wealth and risk
Stress test
A stress test estimates how a portfolio or balance sheet would fare under a specific set of severe market conditions, such as a sharp fall in share prices or a jump in interest rates. It describes a what-if outcome, not a prediction.
Written by Antevo · 15 September 2026
See it in practice01 / In practice
Illustrative only, with invented round numbers. A fictional CHF-based household holds CHF 2,000,000: CHF 1,000,000 in equities, CHF 800,000 in bonds and CHF 200,000 in cash. A made-up scenario assumes equities fall 25%, bonds fall 5% and cash is unchanged. Equities lose CHF 1,000,000 × 25% = CHF 250,000; bonds lose CHF 800,000 × 5% = CHF 40,000. The total scenario loss is CHF 290,000, leaving CHF 1,710,000, a fall of 14.5%. The test does not say this will happen; it shows what the holdings would be worth if those assumed moves did happen together.
Formula. Scenario loss = sum of (position value × assumed change for that position)
02 / In Antevo
Where you will
meet it.
The stress-testing page walks through stress testing on a fictional sample portfolio: a morning review of developments linked to holdings, a scenario explorer, and the coverage and method behind it.
Go there03 / Related terms
Read next.
04 / Sources
Where this comes from.
Primary sources for the definition above. Intelligence, not advice: your adviser or counsel confirms anything a decision rests on.