Associate, Debt Finance - Trading Business

OakNorth; Manchester; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A dynamic financial institution in Manchester is seeking an Associate in Debt Finance. The role involves executing and analyzing financial transactions to support UK businesses. Candidates should have a Bachelor’s degree and ideally 3+ years in a finance role. Competitive benefits and a proactive work environment offered.

Benefits

Equity participation

25 days holiday

Personalized benefits

Subsidised Private Medical Insurance

Enhanced maternity and paternity leave

Wellbeing and social events

Volunteering time off

Salary sacrifice schemes

Qualifications

• 3+ years’ experience in a finance-related role.
• Strong analytical skills with ability to understand complex financial information.
• Self-starter in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Support execution of finance transactions.
• Maintain and update CRM for leads and transactions.
• Contribute to financial analysis and modeling.
• Research and analyze companies and sectors.
• Attend client meetings and capture key insights.

Skills

Financial analysis

Research skills

Communication

Problem-solving

Organizational skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting or Economics

Job description

Since 2015, we’ve provided over £13bn in funding to entrepreneurs — helping create 56,000+ jobs and 34,000+ new homes across the UK and US. And we’re only just getting started.

At OakNorth, we’re on a mission to help innovative businesses thrive. Our Debt Finance team sits at the heart of that mission — supporting ambitious entrepreneurs with tailored funding solutions that drive real impact.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a dynamic, fast-growing bank that’s redefining what’s possible in business lending. We’re not looking for just another cog in the wheel — we want curious, proactive self-starters who are eager to grow their careers while partnering with some of the UK’s most ambitious business leaders.

As an Associate in Debt Finance, you’ll work closely with senior team members across every stage of the transaction lifecycle — from origination through to execution — ensuring each structured, leveraged, sponsor, and cash flow deal is delivered seamlessly and with impact.

Principal Responsibilities

• Support the team on the execution of transactions across trading businesses — including structured, leveraged, sponsor, and cash flow finance deals.
• Help maintain and update the CRM, tracking opportunities from new leads through to completed transactions.
• Assist in the preparation of credit papers and transaction recommendations for Credit Committee and other approval forums.
• Contribute to financial analysis and modelling to assess opportunities and test key assumptions.
• Conduct company, sector, and transaction research, drawing insights from a variety of data sources.
• Attend client and third-party meetings with senior bankers, contributing to discussions and capturing key insights.
• Collaborate across functions (Credit, Transaction Execution, Legal, etc.) to help ensure deals are efficiently executed and funded.

What Makes a Successful Associate

• A Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related field.
• Ideally 3 + years’ experience in a finance-related role — e.g. corporate banking, leveraged finance, debt advisory, or transaction services.
• A keen interest in supporting UK mid-market businesses and learning how debt finance enables growth.
• Strong analytical and research skills, with the ability to grasp complex financial information quickly.
• Confident communicator, both written and verbal, with an ability to collaborate across teams.
• Highly organised and detail-oriented, with a proactive approach to problem-solving and learning.
• A self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment where no two days are the same.

Benefits and Perks

• Equity. We want people to have a stake in the business so that all our interests are aligned.
• 25 days holiday
• Personalized benefits – opt-in to what matters to you
• Subsidised Private Medical Insurance with Bupa
• Enhanced maternity and paternity leave
• Wellbeing and social events
• Support causes that matter to you – Volunteering time off
• Salary sacrifice schemes (Cycle to work, nursery, gym, electric car scheme)