Senior Credit Risk Analyst at Pezesha

Role overview

• Pezesha is a fast-growing digital credit provider and financing platform focused on serving underserved SMEs in Kenya and Uganda. As we continue to scale our impact and improve our credit processes, we are seeking a full-time Senior Credit Risk Analyst Consultant to evaluate the performance of credit portfolios and processes and support risk management enhancements for Kenya and Uganda Operations.
• This is a 12-month full-time consulting contract, with the potential for renewal based on performance and evolving business needs.

Objectives & Responsibilities

• Analyze credit performance data, track repayment trends, and generate insights to inform credit risk and collections strategies
• Clean, process, and analyze data to identify patterns that inform credit scoring, collection models and collections processes
• Develop new credit risk dashboards and reports to enhance real-time view of credit risk performance
• Collaborate with data science department on portfolio monitoring reports and business intelligence
• Support gap analysis on existing credit and collections processes and implementation of improvements with a focus on data analysis and risk management
• Identify new data sources and data collections strategies to optimize credit risk performance
• Provide risk assessment insights to improve recovery rates and minimize fraud
• Join the credit committee and offer insights based on weekly performance reviews to enhance the overall loan book performance
• Conduct regular audits of the entire loan book to ensure complete coverage by the team in customer touchpoints and the implementation of optimization strategies
• Develop and refine risk models to predict potential default rates and portfolio performance.
• Provide insights and recommendations to improve portfolio quality and minimize non-performing loans (NPLs)
• Collaborate with the underwriting team to implement targeted strategies for portfolio segmentation and diversification

Deliverables

• In collaboration with the data team, design and develop new credit risk dashboards and reports created.
• New data sources identified and integrated into existing systems and data strategy updated in line with data governance best practices
• In-depth data analysis conducted in support gap report on existing credit and collections processes
• Insights generated to support improved credit scoring models, collection models, risk management strategies, and collections processes based on data analysis
• Risk assessment insights provided to improve recovery rates and minimize fraud
• Training on new data systems held for Pezesha staff
• Success in this role will be measured by improvements in portfolio performance metrics (e.g., reduction in PAR 30+, increase in collections efficiency, and improved risk-adjusted returns)

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Actuarial Science, Finance, Business or a related field
• At least 5 years analyzing credit risk for lending institutions
• Proficiency in using data analytics and technology in credit decision-making and risk management. Ability to leverage advanced data analytics, machine learning, and predictive modeling for credit risk assessment and fraud detection
• Experience in digital credit and fintech lending, particularly in emerging markets, is highly desirable
• Prior experience in providing leadership in credit risk analysis
• Excellent communication and presentation skills with the ability to convey complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders
• Ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and external partners to achieve project objectives
• Strong experience working with Excel, R, Python or similar data analytics software