Leveraged Finance - Associate

Role Description

SMBC’s Leveraged Finance team is a well-established and rapidly growing platform in the US which will offer firsthand experience into the private equity space. The group’s primary mission is to originate, structure and execute leveraged financing solutions to support financial sponsor activity. Associates will work alongside deal teams to provide cash flow and asset-based financing solutions to support leveraged buyouts (LBO) and merger & acquisition (M&A) transactions, recapitalizations, refinancing, add-on acquisitions, and other financing events for private equity backed companies.

Associates will contribute meaningfully to the transaction process across a variety of different industries including diversified industrials, healthcare, consumer and retail, technology, food and beverage, and other end markets. Associates will develop a core skillset of credit and capital markets analysis with responsibilities including fundamental due diligence, financial statement analysis, cash flow projection modeling, preparation of pitch materials, and other activities to support transaction execution.                                                                  
 

Role Objectives

The job responsibilities are described herein:                                        

• Associates perform a wide range of tasks including complex financial analysis, financial modeling, transaction due diligence, and preparation of screening memos and approval documents in support of the execution of senior debt transactions.                                    
• Prepare investment committee memorandums, which include company and industry descriptions, key credit risks, historical financial analysis, base and downside case projection assumptions/rationale, enterprise valuation, profitability analysis, and terms and conditions.                                    
• Draft offering memorandums, management presentations, and other communications for clients and investors.                                    
• Establish working partnerships and routines with key internal partners including Capital Markets (LCM, ECM, DCM), Corporate & Investment Banking, Derivatives, Credit, and other teams.
• Prepare pitchbooks for senior originators and work on ad hoc projects as needed for management.                                    
• Liaise with sponsors, borrowers, agent banks, and internal loan operations to ensure successful deal closing.                                    
• Manage multiple transactions and projects while communicating effectively with deal team members and staffers on status and prioritization.   

Qualifications and Skills

• Ability to quickly learn and adapt to new processes and systems. Works well in a culturally-diverse and team- oriented environment. Demonstrates intellectual curiosity and an interest in continuous learning.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, ability to synthesize large amounts of information, analyze risk and identify mitigating factors.
• Highly collaborative and flexible in a team and client environment with ability to form good relationships internally and externally. Able to coordinate and communicate with various internal departments across the bank (middle/back office, global counterparts).                                    
• Ability to organize thoughts and clearly articulate points and provide summaries and explanations of transactions, orally or in writing to management or other internal departments.
• Strong accounting skills with an ability to read and interpret financial statements and perform cash flow analysis. Must be proficient in the use of MS Excel, Word and PowerPoint.               
• Demonstrates a high degree of attention to detail and an ability to complete work accurately and in a timely manner against strict deadlines.                                    

                                                                                                                                  
Work Experience:            

• 2 to 5    years of comparable or relevant experience                        
• 2-3 years of experience working as a credit/leveraged finance analyst at a corporate bank, direct lender or other financial institution preferred.                            

                                        
Education:  BA / BS                        
Preferred: Advanced accounting and finance coursework preferred.

Additional Requirements