Risk Management for Credit Risk & Lending Training Course

Non-performing loans remain one of the most persistent threats to financial institutions in emerging markets. They erode profit, consume capital and make lenders cautious just when businesses need finance. Strong credit risk management does not mean refusing to lend; it means pricing, structuring and monitoring risk so that lending can grow safely.

This programme follows the life of a loan. Participants begin with the credit policy and risk appetite that frame lending decisions, then practise appraising borrowers using financial statements, cash flow projections and qualitative assessment. They learn how internal rating models work, what drives probability of default and loss severity, and how security, guarantees and covenants reduce risk. The middle sessions step back to portfolio management: concentration, correlation, stress testing and reporting to the board. The final sessions turn to impairment under IFRS 9, watchlist management, restructuring and recovery.

Training is case-based. Delegates analyse sample credit files, grade borrowers, calculate expected credit loss in a spreadsheet and present a recommendation to a mock credit committee, taking away tools they can apply directly at work.

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Explain the elements of a credit policy and risk appetite framework.
• Appraise borrowers using financial statement and cash flow analysis.
• Assign internal risk grades and interpret PD, LGD and EAD.
• Structure facilities with suitable security, guarantees and covenants.
• Measure and limit concentration risk and run basic portfolio stress tests.
• Calculate expected credit losses and stage exposures under IFRS 9.
• Use early warning indicators to spot deteriorating accounts.
• Plan restructuring and recovery actions for distressed loans.

The course is designed for people who originate, approve or oversee lending, including:

• Credit analysts and credit risk managers
• Corporate, SME and retail relationship managers
• Loan officers in microfinance institutions and SACCOs
• Collections and recovery officers
• Internal auditors and compliance staff reviewing credit
• Central bank and regulatory examiners
• Credit committee members and heads of lending
• Development finance and fund managers

Participants leave the course with:

• A borrower appraisal template covering financial and non-financial factors.
• A simple risk grading scorecard to adapt to their own portfolio.
• An expected credit loss calculator built during the sessions.
• A watchlist and early warning checklist.
• A recovery strategy outline for a distressed account.
• Experience presenting and defending a credit recommendation.

Delivery stays close to real credit work and includes:

• Concise technical briefings with international and regional examples
• Credit files with financial statements for hands-on appraisal
• Spreadsheet labs for rating and provisioning calculations
• Mock credit committee in which teams present and defend proposals
• Discussion of non-performing loan cases contributed by participants

Attendance of all sessions and completion of the case exercises earns a CPD-accredited Certificate of Completion from Vision Reach Global Consultancy, which documents the professional learning undertaken.