Direct Lending, Associate Director

Meraki Talent; Greater London; Sur place; GBP 90 000 - 150 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

Meraki Talent is seeking an Associate Director for our client, a leading global investment management firm, to join the Direct Lending team across the UK and Europe. The role emphasizes originations, due diligence, and portfolio management within a mature private credit platform.

The successful candidate will lead investment opportunities, model and assess deals, and engage with sponsors, advisers, and management teams to drive value and timely completion.

Qualifications

• Relevant experience at Associate Director level within Private Credit, Direct Lending, Leveraged Finance or a closely related investment environment.
• Demonstrable experience of mid-market lending, ideally with exposure to private equity-backed businesses.
• Strong understanding of the deal origination process, including reviewing information memoranda, business plans and third-party due diligence.
• Strong financial analysis and modelling skills, with the ability to assess complex investment opportunities and clearly articulate key risks and returns.
• Experience supporting or leading transactions through due diligence, Investment Committee approval and execution.
• Strong understanding of investment appraisal and credit fundamentals.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to establish trusted relationships with sponsors, advisers, management teams and internal stakeholders.
• Ability to distil complex financial and investment information into clear, commercially focused reports and presentations.
• A relevant professional qualification such as CFA, IMC, ACA or ACCA would be advantageous.

Responsabilités

• Take a senior role within the Investment Team, with a strong focus on originating new investment opportunities across the UK and Europe.
• Lead the assessment and analysis of Private Credit transactions, taking opportunities through due diligence and preparing recommendations for Investment Committee.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with financial sponsors, advisers, management teams and other key market participants to identify and secure new investment opportunities.
• Review information memoranda, business plans and third-party due diligence reports as part of the investment assessment process.
• Build, review and challenge assumptions within financial models, assessing business performance, leverage, cash flow generation and downside scenarios.
• Manage the transaction documentation process alongside internal and external stakeholders to ensure investments are executed efficiently.
• Take responsibility for ongoing portfolio monitoring and management following completion.
• Provide oversight of investments showing signs of stress or distress, working with relevant stakeholders to assess appropriate courses of action.
• Produce clear and concise analysis, reports and presentations for Investment Committee, senior stakeholders and clients.

Description du poste

A leading global investment management firm is looking to appoint an Associate Director into its growing Direct Lending platform.

The team invests across the UK and Europe on behalf of institutional investors, focusing on lower and core mid-market lending opportunities. The platform has grown significantly in recent years and benefits from strong origination relationships across the private equity and leveraged finance market.

The successful candidate will join an established Private Credit investment team and report directly to an Investment Director. The role will have significant exposure across the full investment lifecycle, from origination and transaction assessment through to execution and ongoing portfolio management.

The Role

• Take a senior role within the Investment Team, with a strong focus on originating new investment opportunities across the UK and Europe.


• Lead the assessment and analysis of Private Credit transactions, taking opportunities through due diligence and preparing recommendations for Investment Committee.


• Build and maintain strong relationships with financial sponsors, advisers, management teams and other key market participants to identify and secure new investment opportunities.


• Review information memoranda, business plans and third-party due diligence reports as part of the investment assessment process.


• Build, review and challenge assumptions within financial models, assessing business performance, leverage, cash flow generation and downside scenarios.


• Manage the transaction documentation process alongside internal and external stakeholders to ensure investments are executed efficiently.


• Take responsibility for ongoing portfolio monitoring and management following completion.


• Provide oversight of investments showing signs of stress or distress, working with relevant stakeholders to assess appropriate courses of action.


• Produce clear and concise analysis, reports and presentations for Investment Committee, senior stakeholders and clients.

The Candidate

The successful candidate will have:

• Relevant experience at Associate Director level within Private Credit, Direct Lending, Leveraged Finance or a closely related investment environment.


• Demonstrable experience of mid-market lending, ideally with exposure to private equity-backed businesses.


• Strong understanding of the deal origination process, including reviewing information memoranda, business plans and third-party due diligence.


• Strong financial analysis and modelling skills, with the ability to assess complex investment opportunities and clearly articulate key risks and returns.


• Experience supporting or leading transactions through due diligence, Investment Committee approval and execution.


• Strong understanding of investment appraisal and credit fundamentals.


• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to establish trusted relationships with sponsors, advisers, management teams and internal stakeholders.


• Ability to distil complex financial and investment information into clear, commercially focused reports and presentations.


• A relevant professional qualification such as CFA, IMC, ACA or ACCA would be advantageous.

The Opportunity

This is an opportunity to join a highly established and growing Direct Lending platform with significant exposure to UK and European private credit markets.

The role would suit an experienced Private Credit, Direct Lending or Leveraged Finance professional looking to take on greater responsibility across origination, execution and portfolio management within a sophisticated institutional investment platform.