DEVELOPMENT BANK OF SOUTHERN AFRICA (DBSA) VACANCIES

DEVELOPMENT BANK OF SOUTHERN AFRICA (DBSA)

PRINCIPAL CREDIT OFFICER: PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT

Details

Closing Date

2026/10/09

Reference Number

DBS260923-2

Job Title

Principal Credit Officer: Portfolio Management

Job Type Classification

Permanent

Location - Town / City

Midrand

Location - Province

Gauteng

Location - Country

South Africa

Job Profile (Downloadable)

Principal Credit Officer Portfolio Mngt.docx.pdf (336.62 kb) - 9/23/2026 12:49:03 PM

Job Description

The role is responsible for the ongoing assessment, monitoring, and optimisation of credit risk within the existing portfolio of investments across South Africa, the Rest of Africa and High Impact. The role is critical to maintaining portfolio health through in-depth credit reviews, financial analysis, and proactive risk mitigation strategies. Applying technical and commercial expertise and legal knowledge, the role supports strategic decision-making, contributes to the credit compliance, and ensures that exposures remain aligned with institutional risk appetite. This role interacts closely with the Credit Origination team responsible for new transactions while maintaining dedicated focus on the post-approval performance of the existing portfolio.

Key Responsibilities

1. Credit Portfolio Monitoring and Risk Reviews

Conduct structured, periodic credit reviews on all existing transactions, ensuring timely identification of deterioration of risks.
Initiate/review rapid risk reviews in response to emerging external or internal risk signals, collaborating with internal and external stakeholders for effective intervention.
Track financial and non-financial covenants, monitoring borrower compliance and reporting anomalies.
Review credit quality across sectors and regions, flagging trends and proposing remedial strategies.
Provide early warning indicators and analysis to credit committees and forums to support pre-emptive action.
Perform quick-turnaround risk assessments for urgent or material changes.
Evaluate and recommend credit amendments, waivers, or restructures.

2. Credit Assessment and Financial Analysis

Undertake in-depth financial and cash-flow analysis of portfolio companies, evaluating performance against initial projections and market benchmarks.
Review credit opinions for additional lines of credit for public sector clients, as part of the annual review.
Review accuracy and appropriateness of credit assessments, rating model methodologies applied to ensure correctness and quality of credit assessments to enable decision-making.
Prepare portfolio performance reports, incorporating peer comparisons, geographic and sectors developments, and macroeconomic conditions affecting the Bank portfolio.
Assess amendments to credit terms and provides recommendations for restructuring, covenant waivers, or rescheduling proposals as required.
Conduct scenario analysis and stress testing on key exposures, feeding insights into credit risk appetite and capital allocation decisions.
Support efforts to enhance risk-adjusted return through active management of the credit book.

3. Portfolio Management and Compliance

Adherence to credit-related compliance with internal policies, regulatory standards, and investment mandates across all geographies.
Liaise with team members to ensure seamless handover and continuous oversight of transactions post disbursement.
Support the disbursement process, post-handover, to ensure facility conditions are met as required.
Maintains up-to-date credit ratings and internal loan classifications of all transactions, supporting ongoing monitoring and reporting functions.
Participate in the maintenance and improvement of the credit value chain, identifying process inefficiencies and supporting enhancements to credit systems and processes. Serve as a subject matter expert on portfolio management and credit-related matters for special projects or in pursuit of identifying lessons learnt that can be adopted in origination as well as appropriate forms of credit risk mitigation strategies.

4. Strategic Engagement

Support governance reporting by contributing to reports for Board committees, EXCO, and relevant committees post disbursements.
Support the periodic IFRS 9 provisioning and ECL measurement forum.
Support internal portfolio management committees and forums for early warning identification and intervention.
Contribute to policy development and implementation of portfolio related frameworks and guidelines.
Support audits by preparing necessary reports and documentation in line with best practice and standards.

5. Financial Modelling and Analysis

Build and/or review and challenge model assumptions in financial models for a portfolio of companies.
Conduct cash flow analysis, stress testing, and scenario analysis to test financial viability and draw conclusions / make recommendations to mitigate financial risks identified.
Review ongoing financial compliance of updated financial models and/or recommend and implement new credit risk mitigants (e.g. conditions, collateral, guarantees), as required.
Perform peer benchmarking and sectoral credit comparisons in order to provide valuable insights for the review of the financial modelling assessment.
Support light restructuring and re-scheduling of distressed exposures.

6. Stakeholder Management and Problem-Solving

Collaborate effectively with stakeholders to achieve common goals, facilitating open and clear communication.
Actively listen, share information, and foster a cooperative environment that encourages diverse perspectives and collective problem-solving.

7. People Management

Lead and develop team members by setting clear objectives, providing constructive feedback, and fostering a supportive and collaborative work environment.
Recognising individual strengths, facilitating professional growth, and aligning team efforts with organisational goals to enhance overall performance and engagement.
Provide technical assistance and mentorship to portfolio analysts.
Facilitate training and capacity building within the team on portfolio management, credit tools, and evolving credit practices.

8. Reporting and Monitoring

Stay abreast of sector and country intelligence relevant to portfolio management activities.
Produce accurate, insightful reports and continuously monitoring key financial and non-financial metrics to assess performance and credit migration risk.
Analyse data to identify trends, inform strategic decisions, and provide stakeholders with clear, actionable information that supports ongoing performance improvement and accountability.
Utilise appropriate technologies and tools to enhance reporting efficiency and clarity, while also safeguarding the confidentiality and sensitivity of the information included.
Maintain high standards of accuracy and timeliness to deliver reports that are timely, relevant and precise.

Key measurement of output:

Percentage of scheduled and ad hoc credit reviews completed on time and in line with internal standards.
Precision of internal credit ratings aligned with appropriate model methodologies and validated through back-testing or audit reviews.
Timely detection of early warning indicators and escalated through appropriate channels.
Number of covenant breaches identified and resolved and compliance rate across the monitored portfolio.
Average time taken to complete normal and urgent risk assessment and recommend amendments or waivers.
Quality of financial models built or reviewed, stakeholder feedback on model accuracy and usefulness for decision-making.
Percentage of distressed exposures stabilised or improved through active and appropriate credit intervention strategies.
Percentage of reports submitted on time with no material errors; frequency of actionable insights derived from reports; percentage of submissions deferred as a result of substandard quality.
Feedback from internal and external stakeholders on quality, communication, responsiveness, and problem-solving support.

Expertise & Technical Competencies

a) Risk Identification & Assessment / Technical

Diagnoses significant, unusual and emerging risks to which the business is exposed.
Advises on applicable aspects of risk identification and assessment.
Demonstrate advanced proficiency and up-to-date knowledge in specialised areas, applying this expertise to solve complex problems, drive innovation, and contribute to strategic initiatives.
Continuously expand skills to adapt to industry advancements and enhance organisational capabilities.
Manage effective and efficient execution of tasks and projects by optimising processes, managing resources, and adhering to timelines.

b) Risk management policies and procedures

Develops innovative approaches to managing significant business risks effectively and efficiently.
Leads implementation, execution and monitoring activities.
Advises on best solutions and foresees the impact of changes in regulations, policies and procedures for non-complex and increasingly complex business issues.

c) Data collection and analysis

Skilled in the use of advanced/complex analytical techniques.
Is able to use judgement to decide upon the most appropriate analytical techniques according to the situation.
Recognises underlying principles, patterns, or themes in an array of related information, and determine whether additional information would be useful or necessary.
Through an in-depth understanding of the business environment, reviews outputs of analysis to identify anomalies and draws conclusions, relating these to operational circumstances.
Can model a range of scenarios covering all potential business circumstances and highlight potential risks/opportunities.

d) Planning and organising

Is relied on to helps others plan and organise their workload.
Uses effectively advance time management processes to deal with high workload and tight deadlines.
Organises, prioritises and schedules tasks so they can be performed within budget and with the efficient use of time and resources.
Achieves goals in a timely manner, despite obstacles encountered, by organising, reprioritising and replanning.

e) Financial acumen

Makes sound financial decisions after having analysed their impacts on the organisation, partner agencies, and community.
Effectively supports the preparation of budgetary submissions and forecasts for own department.
Knows the internal and external factors that impact on resource and asset availability.
Is able to interpret management account reports in an operational/commercial context and take action as appropriate to maximise revenues and control costs.

f) Financial Modelling

Demonstrating expertise in developing, analysing, and interpreting complex financial models to support strategic decision-making and business objectives. This involves creating accurate and reliable models that forecast financial performance, assess business scenarios, and evaluate investments or projects.

g) Reporting

Designs / customises reports to meet user needs.
Prepares complex or tailored reports, gathers information from a variety of sources, analyses and includes in a report.
Keeps standard reports under review and proposes improvements to meet user needs.

*The KPA’s, competencies and relationships listed in this document, is not exhaustive and the incumbent will be expected to undertake additional duties within their capacity to meet the needs of business and/or the business unit.*

Qualifications

Postgraduate degree in Economics, Finance, Accounting, Business Administration or Risk Management or related field.

Experience

Minimum of 10 years’ experience in credit risk analysis, portfolio monitoring, or financial analysis within a wholesale, investment banking, or development finance environment.
Proven track record in conducting credit reviews and portfolio monitoring across South Africa and broader African markets.
Extensive experience in credit assessments, financial modelling, and risk analysis for both new and existing investments.
Strong capabilities in financial structuring, with exposure to complex lending instruments, including bilateral and syndicated facilities.
Skilled in negotiating and managing stakeholders, with the ability to assess and structure complex transactions.
Familiarity with ESG, sustainable finance, and blended finance frameworks.
Proficient in credit systems, risk reporting tools, and core credit risk management principles.
Demonstrated ability to prepare high-quality credit analysis and investment write-ups, supported by advanced credit reasoning.
Solid understanding of the loan lifecycle and the end-to-end credit value chain.
Experience in evaluating facility amendments, restructurings, and covenant waivers.

Desirable Requirements

Master’s degree in Economics, Finance, Accounting or related field is advantageous.
Professional certification in Financial Risk Management, Chartered Financial Analysis or CA (SA) or equivalent.
Strong understanding and experience of sovereign risk, infrastructure finance, and public sector lending.
Experience in working on bilateral, club or syndicated transactions with multilateral institutions, investment banks, government agencies and private sector sponsors in infrastructure.

Required Personal Attributes

a) Achievement Orientation

Focuses on new or more effective ways of improving own work and meeting targets.
Focuses on raising quality, customer satisfaction and revenues.
Makes specific changes to systems and processes in order to improve efficiency and quality.
Formulates own objectives and action plans in order to achieve a measurable improvement in the future.

b) Customer Service Orientation

Tries to understand the underlying needs of customers and matches these needs to available or customised products and services.
Adapts processes and procedures to meet on-going customer needs.
Utilises the feedback received by customers, in order to develop new and/or improve existing services/products that relate to their on-going needs.
Thinks of new ways to align DBSA’s offerings with future customer needs.

c) Self-awareness and Self-Control

Withholds effects of strong emotions in difficult situations.
Keeps functioning or responds constructively despite stress.
May apply special techniques or plan ahead of time to manage emotions or stress.

d) Attention to detail

Double-checks the accuracy of information or work.
Ensures that the work produced doesn’t contain any errors.

e) Analytical thinking

Identifies the cause-and-effect relationship between two aspects of a situation.

f) Strategic and Innovative Thinking

Experiments with new approaches, tests scenarios, questions assumptions and challenges conventional thinking.
Creates new concepts that are not obvious to others, leveraging internal and external sources of information, to build incremental revenue and growth opportunities.

g) Teamwork and Cooperation

Acts to promote a friendly climate and good morale and resolves conflicts.
Creates opportunities for cross-functional working.
Encourages others to network outside of their own team/department and learn from their experience.

Policy

The Development Bank of Southern Africa will endeavour to make appointments in line with its Employment Equity Policy and Plan. Applications from suitably qualified designated groups, especially people with disabilities, are encouraged.

The DBSA corporate culture fit requires clear, logical and analytical thinking grounded in good interpersonal skills, a sense of urgency and results orientated execution of duties. The ability to work collaboratively and finding practical yet innovative solutions is critical to success in a work environment that demands emotional resilience, accountability and responsible risk taking and management.

The DBSA reserves the right to amend or remove vacancies in line with organisational requirements.

All vacancies can be viewed on the DBSA website (www.dbsa.org) under Careers.

PLEASE APPLY HERE

SENIOR LEGAL ADVISOR: TRANSACTING (SA)

Details

Closing Date

2026/10/09

Reference Number

DBS260922-2

Job Title

Senior Legal Advisor: Transacting (SA)

Job Grade

Job Type Classification

Permanent

Location - Town / City

Midrand

Location - Province

Gauteng

Location - Country

South Africa

Job Profile (Downloadable)

Senior Legal Advisor Transacting_Job Profile May 2026 Final - SA.docx.pdf (317.18 kb) - 9/22/2026 4:00:58 PM

Job Description

The Senior Legal Advisor is responsible for providing legal advice and support to clients on the financing activities of DBSA, ensuring that all actions, initiatives, and investments are legally sound and protect the investment portfolio. Mitigate legal risks and prevent adverse reputational or other negative consequences for DBSA. Provide guidance and leadership to junior professionals in the legal team, fostering their development and ensuring consistency in legal counsel across the organisation.

Key Responsibilities

Legal Transaction Structuring, Execution & Advisory

Provide strategic legal leadership across the full transaction lifecycle, including high-value and complex transactions.
Lead, from a legal perspective, the structuring and execution of transactions across project finance, blended and structured finance, equity investments, and public-private partnerships (PPPs), ensuring alignment with institutional mandates, legal frameworks, and risk appetite.
Act as a strategic legal partner to Investment Division and multidisciplinary teams, driving the development of innovative, commercially sound financing structures and solutions, while providing expert legal oversight throughout the transaction lifecycle.
Conduct comprehensive legal due diligence and risk assessments, identifying legal, regulatory, and structuring risks and implementing appropriate mitigation strategies.
Draft, review, and negotiate complex legal documentation, including term sheets, mandates, facility agreements, shareholder agreements, security packages, and intercreditor/co-funding arrangements.
Lead, in support of the Investment Division, Business Support and Recovery and/or Credit Risk and Portfolio management, as the case may be, negotiations with sponsors, borrowers, lenders, co-funders, and counterparties to achieve optimal commercial and legal outcomes.
Provide expert legal input into appraisal reports, credit papers, and committee submissions, and actively contribute to credit committee deliberations.
Provide expert legal support and input in transaction execution through approval to financial close, ensuring legal integrity, enforceability, and compliance.
Manage external legal counsel, including appointment, briefing, performance oversight, and cost control, to ensure efficient delivery of specialised legal services.
Provide ongoing legal advisory support across corporate, operational, and investment functions.

Compliance and Regulatory Support

Promote adherence to applicable legislation, regulatory requirements, and internal governance frameworks across all legal and transactional activities.
Monitor and interpret legal and regulatory developments, providing proactive, strategic guidance to the organisation.
Support and strengthen institutional compliance and governance frameworks in collaboration with Compliance and Risk functions.
Review legal documentation, decisions, and processes to ensure alignment with regulatory and policy requirements.

Dispute Resolution and Litigation

Manage litigation and dispute resolution processes, safeguarding the organisation’s legal, financial, and reputational interests.
Lead the appointment and oversight of external counsel in disputes, ensuring high-quality representation and cost-effectiveness.
Advise management on litigation risk exposure and recommend appropriate dispute resolution strategies, including alternative dispute mechanisms.
Facilitate timely and commercially sound resolution of disputes.

Stakeholder Management & Capacity Building

Collaborate with internal stakeholders to provide practical and commercially sound legal solutions.
Build effective working relationships with business units to support informed decision-making.
Provide legal training and awareness on legal and regulatory developments to internal stakeholders.
Build and maintain strong relationships with internal stakeholders, providing practical, solution-oriented legal advice.
Engage effectively with external stakeholders, including clients, co-funders, regulators, and legal advisors.
Provide legal training and guidance to enhance organisational awareness of legal, regulatory, and transactional risks.

Key Measurements of Outputs

Achievement of favourable or commercially acceptable outcomes in investment transactions, aligned with the organisation’s legal strategy and risk appetite.
Quality, accuracy and timeliness of legal advice, documentation and transaction support.
Effective handling of disputes to minimise adverse reputational impact on the organisation.
Minimisation of financial losses, penalties, and contingent liabilities arising from disputes and litigation.
Time taken to prepare and or review contracts, agreements and legal opinions.
Quality and accuracy of agreements, opinions and solutions provided.
Effective management of legal claims and litigation risks.
Management of total case/agreement/opinion / other legal costs.
No litigation due to contractual errors and or omissions.
Effective monitoring of the contracts and agreements.
Strong compliance outcomes, including clean audit results

Expertise & Technical Competencies

Minimum Qualification

A Bachelor of Laws degree (LLB) or Legal postgraduate qualification.
Admitted Attorney/Advocate of the High Court of South Africa.

Minimum Experience

A minimum of 8-10 years’ post-qualification experience in a commercial/finance/banking or corporate law environment, providing legal support on investment transactions such as project finance, structured and corporate finance.
Proven experience in complex contract drafting, legal risk management, and regulatory compliance.
Strong track record in drafting and negotiating transaction documentation, including term sheets, facility agreements, shareholder agreements, security documents, and intercreditor agreements.
Demonstrated experience in leading legal due diligence processes and advising on transaction risks, mitigants, and structuring solutions.
In-depth understanding of banking and finance law, corporate law, security structures, and regulatory frameworks, particularly within a development finance or infrastructure investment environment.
Experience working on multi-stakeholder transactions, including engagements with sponsors, lenders, DFIs, regulators, and external counsel.

Desirable Requirements:

A postgraduate qualification in development finance or investment banking.
Experience in the financial services or banking industry.
Demonstrated experience dealing with cross-border transactions and multi-jurisdictional legal considerations.

TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES

Written communication

Understands that different writing styles are required for different documents or audiences.
Write effective correspondence, prepare questions and reports, statements of circumstance and briefing notes.
Reviews others’ documents for clarity and impact.
Has a solid mastery of writing principles such as grammar, sentence construction, etc.

Presentation skills

Can reinforce key presentation points with examples.
Can translate technical terminology into language understandable to the audience.
Has insight into the audience’s behaviour and motivation and responds appropriately and professionally, adapting communication style as appropriate.

Reporting

Designs / customises reports to meet user needs.
Prepares complex or tailored reports, gathers information from a variety of sources, analyses and includes in a report.
Keeps standard reports under review and proposes improvements to meet user needs.

Legal Knowledge

Extensive knowledge and understanding of the principles of DBSA.
Wide-ranging knowledge of industry best practice, and keeps abreast of, interprets and informs on developments in the area of new laws and regulations relevant to DBSA.

Legal Policy Knowledge

Ability to represent DBSA in the court of law when required.
Ability to draft non-standard legal documents per procedures.
Ability to draft more sensitive policy and legal procedures to be followed by stakeholders of DBSA, and review and refine in response to inputs from relevant stakeholders, for approval.
Ability to understand legal rights and responsibilities and the possession of authority to make legal decisions.
Protects the organisation’s legal rights, utilising a broad knowledge base of all major legal disciplines.

Presentation Skills

Knows how to deliver arguments persuasively by employing a range of advanced presentation techniques (e.g., the appropriate use of body language, how to close a presentation so that the audience continues to think about the subject matter, etc.).
Has knowledge of various feedback mechanisms to check levels of audience understanding.

Business Acumen

Takes actions to fit business strategy.
Assesses and links short-term tasks in the context of long-term business strategies or perspectives.
Reviews own actions against the organisation's strategic plan; includes the big picture when considering possible opportunities or projects, or thinks about long-term applications of current activities.
Anticipates possible responses to different initiatives.
Understands the projected direction of the industry and how changes might impact the organisation.

Negotiations

Has an appreciation of cultural sensitivities and differences.
Effectively employs a variety of advanced behavioural/interpersonal competencies to control the negotiation situation.
Is able to take the lead in a variety of sensitive negotiation situations requiring high levels of tact and diplomacy.
Is able to place a discrete negotiation situation within the context of a broader long-term relationship and is not threatened by conceding ground to protect the longer-term interests of DBSA.

*The KPA’s, competencies and relationships listed in this document are not exhaustive, and the incumbent will be expected to undertake additional duties within their capacity to meet the needs of business and/or the business unit.

Required Personal Attributes

BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES

Customer Service Orientation

Tries to understand the underlying needs of customers and matches these needs to available or customised products and services.
Adapts processes and procedures to meet ongoing customer needs.
Utilises the feedback received by customers to develop new and/or improve existing services/products that relate to their ongoing needs.
Thinks of new ways to align DBSA’s offerings with future customer needs.

Self-awareness and Self Control

Withholds effects of strong emotions in difficult situations.
Keeps functioning or responds constructively despite stress.
May apply special techniques or plan ahead of time to manage emotions or stress.

Strategic and Innovative Thinking

Experiments with new approaches, tests scenarios, questions assumptions and challenges conventional thinking.
Creates new concepts that are not obvious to others, leveraging internal and external sources of information, to build incremental revenue and growth opportunities.

Driving delivery of results

Sets challenging goals that will have a significant impact on the business or support the organisational strategy.
Commits significant resources and/or time to ensure that challenging goals are achieved, while also taking action to mitigate risk.

Teamwork & Cooperation

Acts to promote a friendly climate and good morale and resolves conflicts.
Creates opportunities for cross-functional working.
Encourages others to network outside of their own team/department and learn from their experience.

Policy

The DBSA reserves the right to amend or remove vacancies in line with organisational requirements.

All vacancies can be viewed on the DBSA website (www.dbsa.org) under Careers.

PLEASE APPLY HERE

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