Lending Transaction Management - Associate

About the position:

We have a great opportunity to join Wholesale Banking Lending Luxembourg as Associate. This is a junior lending professional role within the front office. As a key member of the Lending team, you will support and work closely with Fund Finance Sector originators, PAMs and/or Deal Principals (“DPs”) and Legal, whilst aligning with back office / support teams. The work will be fast-paced and multifaceted. On the team, you will have a primary focus on the Fund Finance sector, but you will also be exposed to, and expected to work with the other sectors in which ING Luxembourg specializes. At the same time, the Lending team plays a key role in further optimizing our processes for regulatory readiness, operational effectiveness and portfolio optimization.

The vacancy involves regular contact with clients, prospects, other banks, technical and legal advisors as well as frequent cooperation with internal departments such as Credit Risk Management, Legal, and Deal Execution.

Responsibilities:

The Lending team includes Transaction Management and Portfolio Management.

Transaction Management involves the team in every new lending transaction, working closely with the client sector origination team, relationship managers and/or the Deal Principals and will take responsibility for many of the key processes, which include:

• Preparing and efficiently processing of credit approval packages including annexes and all requisite attachments;
• Building and creating financial models with sensitivity analysis and validation of key assumptions;
• Interfacing with loan operations, treasury and the lending center of excellence units to verify limit availability] and compliance with internal policies;
• The responsibility for deal closing including final CPs and obtaining the final loan documents.
• Preparation of marketing materials and lending analytics for clients;
• Term sheet negotiations and forming a club or syndicate;
• Analysis of different transaction structures and providing recommendations;
• Preparing business comparables and analysis of debt structures, performance metrics and debt pricing;
• Attending meetings and calls with customers including transaction-related due diligence;
• Staying current on organizational operating policies and procedures (i.e. Risk, Legal, etc.) to ensure appropriate protocols are implemented and followed, and facilitate accordingly;
• Enhancing internal processes, suggesting efficiency improvements.

Specific responsibilities of an associate include:

• Reviewing due diligence including summarizing and performing analytics;
• Reviewing legal documentation and validating key terms & conditions;
• Writing Greenlight memos, presentation and discussion with Risk Management;
• Running internal models including risk ratings and loan pricing, and interfacing with risk management to establish the appropriate internal risk rating.
• Ensuring a consistent level of quality and policy compliance through training and development activities;
• Working with and mentor Analysts, trainees and Interns by supporting them in their personal and professional development as lending professionals.

Portfolio Management involves the team as the ‘center of excellence’ for the in-life management of ING’s lending exposure. It covers all activities post the initial funding to the final repayment of a lending transaction. As a front office department, it will closely collaborate with Origination & Structuring colleagues and product specialists to ensure a seamless client experience. The team supports the identification of cross-buy opportunities and is also closely involved in the delivery of ING’s capital velocity targets. The team will be supported by Global Lending Support in Dublin and the ING hub in the Philippines. Together with Tribe Lending and CLEC, it will be a key driver of improving processes, standardisation, and digitalisation across Lending.

The specific responsibilities of an Associate include actively managing all facets of the individual files booked in your dedicated portfolio, including but not limited to:

• Quarterly and annual credit reviews;
• Process amendment and waiver requests, write or review credit modifications, submit to risk and address Q&A, follow-up on the required legal amendments to the documentation until execution;
• Review annual risk rating updates prepared by an administrative support team;
• Diligent and proactive credit monitoring through the review of all financial covenants and operating performance (e.g. financial models, proforma adjustments, key drivers, etc.) and track compliance of covenants prepared by an administrative support team; 
• Identification and resolution of Early Warning Signals for a deterioration in credit quality.

In addition, an Associate will monitor and identify market developments and proactively manage their potential impact on your portfolio by

• Preparing and maintaining reports as requested by regulators or internal stakeholders;
• Preparing quarterly Credit Risk Management (“CRM”) portfolio reviews;
• Maintaining various department and industry databases/trackers;
• Maintaining internal portfolio tracking metrics;
• Responding to ad hoc internal requests on portfolio composition and exposure;
• Coordinating and working with offshore portfolio support teams;
• Managing lending limits and Capital Velocity programs.

An Associate will take an active role in the various Virtual Client Teams by

• Interfacing with relationship managers and sector specialists to ensure an active dialogue on credit trends, challenges and opportunities for individual clients;
• Contributing to idea generation for value added cross-buy or client opportunities.

An Associate is expected to build a culture of operational excellence by

• Staying up-to-date on organizational operating policies and procedures (i.e. Risk, Legal, etc.) to ensure appropriate protocols are implemented and followed, and facilitating accordingly;
• Supporting the implementation of strategic initiatives, including enhancements to the credit monitoring process to improve business efficiency;
• Supporting the implement transformation projects;
• Working with and coaching Analysts, trainees and interns by supporting them in their personal and professional development. 

Qualifications and Competencies

Qualifications / Education:

Master’s degree in finance/economics/accounting/management/engineering (or similar);

Experience / Knowledge:

2-5 years of relevant WB lending experience or [relevant sector]-related field experience

Competencies:

• Collaborative and inclusive team player with consistent high marks on Orange Code behavior; embracing diversity and cross-cultural awareness and able to work effectively across functions;.
• Strong interest in the Fund Finance and openness to other sectors.
• Exposure in corporate and project finance loan origination and execution;
• Understanding of credit skills and understanding of debt capital markets;
• Committed and dedicated individual who will continuously improve the way the team works;
• Strong analytical skills and financial modelling skills;
• Your curiosity makes you want to understand things in detail;
• Flexible and with a global mindset;
• Authentic and confident presentation and communication skills;
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment with multiple competing priorities;
• Self-motivated and willing to work in a deal oriented and deadline driven environment;
• Strong work ethic, positive attitude, and professional demeanor.