Senior Vice President, Leveraged Finance Credit Underwriting
Citi · New York, United States · 1d ago
Citi's Leveraged Finance Underwriting team is looking for a Senior Vice President to lead credit underwriting, risk assessment, and portfolio management across complex leveraged finance transactions for sponsor-backed and corporate clients. In this senior role, you will sit at the intersection of strategic deal execution and disciplined risk management, working closely with partners across Leveraged Finance Capital Markets, Investment Banking, Corporate Banking, Risk, and Legal. Your credit judgment and leadership will directly shape the quality and performance of Citi's leveraged lending portfolio.
Additionally, the SVP may be involved in the underwriting of venture lending deals to emerging growth pre-IPO companies at the forefront of innovation. These transactions come with significant senior-level attention and exposure.
Responsibilities
- Lead the underwriting, structuring, and approval of complex leveraged finance transactions — including leveraged buyouts, acquisition financings, recapitalizations, refinancings, and dividend transactions — as well as venture lending to pre-IPO emerging growth companies.
- Act as a senior credit advisor on each transaction, providing rigorous challenge to leverage assumptions, valuation analyses, covenant structures, and risk-adjusted return profiles to ensure sound credit outcomes.
- Direct due diligence efforts across deal teams, building a thorough understanding of clients' business models, industry positioning, capital structures, and financial performance to inform credit recommendations.
- Evaluate and stress-test financial models underpinning enterprise valuations, debt capacity assessments, and operating forecasts, ensuring conclusions are well-supported and clearly presented to senior management and approval committees.
- Oversee an active credit portfolio by proactively identifying emerging risks, tracking covenant performance, liquidity trends, and refinancing challenges, and escalating concerns where appropriate.
- Ensure all transactions and ongoing portfolio activities meet Citi's credit policies, leveraged lending guidance, and regulatory expectations, including engagement with internal and external regulators.
- Lead, mentor, and develop Analysts and Associates across New York and global partner locations, setting high standards for credit underwriting, financial analysis, and risk discipline.
Required Qualifications & Skills
- 8 or more years of experience in leveraged finance underwriting, corporate banking, credit risk management, direct lending, restructuring, investment banking, or a related institutional credit discipline.
- Demonstrated expertise in evaluating and underwriting large, complex leveraged finance and/or venture lending transactions, including sponsor-backed and corporate financings.
- Deep knowledge of leveraged buyouts, acquisition financings, syndicated loans, high-yield debt, and broader leveraged finance markets, with a track record of underwriting large and complex transactions.
- Strong independent credit judgment, with the ability to assess risk-reward tradeoffs, identify structural vulnerabilities, and influence transaction outcomes across senior stakeholders.
- Advanced financial analysis skills, including the ability to interpret financial statements, evaluate cash flow generation, assess debt capacity, and critically review management projections.
- Experience operating within a highly regulated credit environment, with familiarity across leveraged lending guidance, credit policy frameworks, and governance requirements.
- Ability to lead cross-functional deal teams and drive alignment across Banking, Capital Markets, Risk, Finance, and Legal counterparts in a fast-paced transaction environment.
- Clear and persuasive communicator, with the ability to present credit analyses and portfolio recommendations to senior leadership and credit approval committees with confidence and precision.
Beneficial Skills & Qualifications
- Familiarity with portfolio stress testing methodologies and credit monitoring frameworks applied across large, diversified lending portfolios.
- Prior experience developing or enhancing end-to-end credit underwriting frameworks, risk governance standards, or internal credit policy processes at an institutional level.
What We Offer
This is a senior leadership role with genuine influence over one of Citi's most strategically significant credit franchises. You will gain exposure to a broad range of industries, financial sponsors, capital structures, and market conditions, while playing a central part in decisions that shape portfolio quality and risk-adjusted returns at scale.
- Direct ownership of high-profile, complex leveraged finance transactions with visibility at the most senior levels of the organization.
- Opportunity to develop deep expertise across leveraged lending, portfolio management, and risk governance within a global financial institution.
- Exposure to venture lending for pre-IPO companies, providing engagement with high-growth, innovation-led businesses and significant senior leadership attention.
- A collaborative, performance-driven environment where credit excellence, accountability, and sound judgment are recognized and rewarded.
- Leadership opportunity to shape and mentor the next generation of credit professionals across New York and global partner locations.
- Hybrid working model with 3 days in the office and 2 days working remotely, supporting both team collaboration and individual flexibility.
- Access to Citi's global network, resources, and career development opportunities across one of the world's leading financial institutions.
Apply now to take senior ownership of complex credit decisions and help lead Citi's leveraged finance underwriting practice at the highest level.
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Job Family Group:
Risk Management------------------------------------------------------
Job Family:
Credit Risk------------------------------------------------------
Time Type:
Full time------------------------------------------------------
Primary Location:
New York New York United States------------------------------------------------------
Primary Location Full Time Salary Range:
$163,600.00 - $245,400.00
In addition to salary, Citi’s offerings may also include, for eligible employees, discretionary and formulaic incentive and retention awards. Citi offers competitive employee benefits, including: medical, dental & vision coverage; 401(k); life, accident, and disability insurance; and wellness programs. Citi also offers paid time off packages, including planned time off (vacation), unplanned time off (sick leave), and paid holidays. For additional information regarding Citi employee benefits, please visit citibenefits.com. Available offerings may vary by jurisdiction, job level, and date of hire.
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Most Relevant Skills
Analytical Thinking, Credible Challenge, Financial Analysis, Governance, Policy, Procedure, and Regulation, Risk Management Lifecycle.------------------------------------------------------
Other Relevant Skills
Constructive Debate, Escalation Management, Policy and Procedure, Policy and Regulation, Product Knowledge, Risk Controls and Monitors, Risk Identification and Assessment.------------------------------------------------------
Anticipated Posting Close Date:
Oct 16, 2026------------------------------------------------------
Automated Processing and AI
We use automated processing, including artificial intelligence, for our legitimate business interests (or our reasonable and appropriate business purposes) to identify and align the candidate's skills and abilities with a specific job opening. Additionally, if you so choose, or consent, we can match your skills and abilities to other suitable roles at Citi.
Importantly, all our hiring processes and decisions, including determining your suitability for a role, are conducted, checked, and decided by individuals. Our automated processing and AI do not involve relying on automatic or autonomous decision-making. Please refer to any Jurisdictional Considerations, with specific provisions for your country (where relevant) for further details.
Illinois residents – AI Notice and Right
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