Facility Associate

Empowering Africa's tomorrow, together one story at a time. With over 100 years of rich history and strongly positioned as a local bank with regional and international expertise, a career with our family offers the opportunity to be part of this exciting growth journey, to reset our future and shape our destiny as a proudly African group. Job Summary The Facility Associate in the Structured Trade & Commodity Finance (STCF) team is responsible for the end-to-end post-origination management of facilities. The role exists to ensure all ongoing administration, compliance, and risk-monitoring tasks for approved facilities are executed efficiently and in line with policy. Each Facility Associate oversees facilities within a specific portfolio, under the guidance of the Desk Head, to maintain credit quality and operational rigor across the portfolio. This role serves as the key point of contact for internal stakeholders and service providers on all matters related to the maintenance and performance of these credit facilities. This is not a Deal Originator role. Job Description Annual Reviews & Compliance: Ensure timely completion of all annual facility reviews for each counterparty and facility, preparing the required review documentation and analysis before the facility's expiry. This includes spreading financial statements and running risk models (pricing, EAD/LGD) for each review, and confirming that all credit conditions and covenants from the original approval are identified and accurately reflected in the documentation. Outcome: All annual review papers and credit renewals are completed on schedule with comprehensive financial analysis, preventing any lapse that could impact risk ratings or compliance. Due Diligence & Documentation: Conduct thorough ongoing due diligence and risk analysis on clients and facilities. This involves reviewing industry/sector information, insurance and collateral details, and any new developments that could affect the facility's risk profile. Assist in preparing or independently writing required risk reports and specialist documents - such as credit memos, justification letters, or transaction approval documents - to support credit decisions and monitoring. Covenant Monitoring & Service Provider Management: Accurately track and manage all facility conditions, covenants, and collateral requirements throughout the life of each deal. Map every credit requirement from approval to the facility agreement to ensure all CP's are covered in the facility agreement. Maintain up-to-date records of covenant compliance, condition subsequent fulfillment, and any triggers or limits, updating internal systems (e.g. monitoring tools) on a weekly/monthly basis. Manage third-party service providers related to the facility (such as collateral managers, storage providers, insurance brokers, etc.): oversee the timely onboarding of new service providers by completing all required risk and compliance checks as per policy, and ensure existing service providers undergo regular reviews. Coordinate site inspections and other oversight activities, keeping relevant internal teams (Collateral Management, Risk, etc.) informed of schedules and outcomes. Deviation Requests & Breach Management: Proactively identify when a facility's terms or performance deviates from agreed conditions. Prepare and submit deviation requests for any proposed changes or exceptions to approved terms, providing clear rationale and ensuring requisite approvals are obtained. Monitor for any breaches of covenant or unmet conditions subsequent; if detected, draft breach letters or similar notifications and escalate them appropriately. Outcome: All deviations from standard terms are formally approved in advance, and any compliance breaches are swiftly addressed with documented action plans, protecting the bank's position. Governance, Meetings & Implementation Support: Play an active role in deal governance forums and implementation of new facilities. Attend internal Deal Forum meetings, where applicable, for new or existing deals - recording key discussion points and decisions and supporting front-office by compiling meeting minutes and action items. For each approved transaction and where applicable, coordinate the Transaction Approval (TA) committees, including scheduling TA meetings, inviting all relevant stakeholders (Credit, Legal, Operations, etc.), and ensuring that any queries raised are tracked and resolved within set timelines. After approval, assist with the implementation of the facility (account opening, system set-ups, linking of collateral, etc.) to ensure a smooth onboarding of new SCF clients. Outcome: Governance processes are well-coordinated - meetings are efficient and documented, and new facilities are operationalized seamlessly with all stakeholders informed. Reporting & Portfolio Monitoring: Health checks Monitor portfolio performance and risk metrics on an ongoing basis and prepare regular reports where applicable. This includes compiling monthly portfolio or performance reports (such as the monthly PRI - Portfolio Risk Indicators or similar) to review key drivers like utilization, exposures, covenant status, and any risk events. Highlight any issues or adverse trends and recommend corrective actions as needed. Attend and contribute to the monthly portfolio review meetings, present updates on the facilities under your management and implementing any follow-up actions decided in these forums. Education & Qualifications: Bachelor's degree in Finance, Business, Economics or a related field is required with minimum 5 years experience in the Agri sector. Experience with client management, operational risk management, financial controls, etc would be an advantage. Alternatively a tertiary financial/Agri related qualification other than a B Degree, with at least 10 years Agri sector experience which involved exposure to stakeholder engagements, operations, logistics, risk management, and financial analysis. A minimum of five years' experience in banking, credit risk, and operational management is required. Technical Skills: A sound foundational understanding of financial analysis and core credit risk principles. The candidate should demonstrate the ability to interpret financial statements, with exposure to or a willingness to develop skills in financial spreading. A solid working knowledge of loan and facility documentation, including covenants and conditions precedent and subsequent, is required to ensure adherence to legal and credit terms. Experience with or exposure to internal banking systems used for facility monitoring (e.g. workflow tools and covenant tracking systems) will be advantageous; training on specific internal platforms will be provided where necessary. Education Bachelor s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required) Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank. Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised At Absa, our story is not a single narrative. It's thousands of individual journeys unfolding across Africa and beyond.From colleagues serving customers in local communities to teams shaping financial solutions across borders, Absa is built on people who bring their lived experiences, ambitions and perspectives into the workplace every day. Whether you're starting your career, a seasoned leader or somewhere in between, your contribution is seen, valued and connected to something bigger.Our presence across