Credit Appraisal and Analysis Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Credit Analysts, Relationship Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-BI-080

Before you join: Participants should have basic familiarity with business finance, including income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Credit decisions depend on evidence that a borrower can and will repay under normal and stressed conditions. Weak appraisal can approve facilities supported by optimistic forecasts, unreliable accounts, poorly documented security or covenants that provide little warning before losses arise. Credit analysts and relationship managers must connect business performance, financial statements, cash generation, industry risk, facility structure and recovery prospects into a clear lending recommendation.

This course develops the methods used to assess commercial credit applications and manage risk after drawdown. Participants examine the Five Cs of Credit, borrower due diligence, industry and management assessment, financial statement analysis, ratio analysis, cash flow forecasting, debt service capacity, internal ratings, expected credit loss concepts and collateral assessment. They learn to structure facilities with suitable tenor, repayment schedules, pricing, covenants, conditions and security, then monitor performance through annual reviews, covenant testing, watchlists and early warning indicators.

Instruction combines focused briefings with worked financial cases, group analysis of borrower information, credit committee simulations and structured review of lending documentation. Participants apply the methods to realistic business lending situations involving working capital facilities, term loans, stressed borrowers and restructuring decisions. They leave with a reusable credit appraisal pack containing analysis templates, a lending recommendation structure, covenant design guidance and a monitoring plan suitable for adaptation to their institution's policy.

The course suits professionals involved in commercial lending, credit risk, relationship management, loan review, underwriting and portfolio oversight. It is also relevant to finance staff who prepare borrowing proposals or need to understand how lenders assess repayment capacity.

What you will be able to do

  • Assess borrower creditworthiness using the Five Cs of Credit and verified due diligence evidence
  • Analyse financial statements using trend, common-size, ratio and cash flow methods
  • Build a 13-week cash forecast and assess debt service capacity under scenarios
  • Apply internal rating concepts using probability of default, loss given default and exposure at default
  • Evaluate collateral, guarantees, security ranking and legal enforceability risks
  • Structure lending facilities using tenor, repayment sources, covenants, conditions and pricing
  • Prepare a credit approval paper with a clear recommendation, rationale and risk mitigants
  • Monitor performing and stressed facilities using covenants, watchlists and early warning indicators

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce clearer and better-supported credit recommendations
  • Identify repayment risks before facility approval
  • Test management forecasts against cash flow evidence
  • Design covenants linked to borrower risk drivers
  • Contribute confidently to credit committee discussions

For your organisation

  • Improved consistency in commercial credit appraisal
  • Earlier detection of borrower deterioration
  • Better alignment between facility structure and repayment capacity
  • Stronger documentation of credit decisions and exceptions
  • Reduced avoidable losses from weak monitoring and delayed intervention

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can frame a credit assessment around repayment capacity, risk appetite and verified borrower evidence.

  • Credit lifecycle, delegated authority and risk appetite in lending decisions
  • Five Cs framework: character, capacity, capital, collateral and conditions
  • Borrower due diligence using KYC, AML and beneficial ownership records
  • Credit proposal structure: purpose, source of repayment and mitigants
  • Distinguishing credit risk from operational, market and conduct risk
  • Information quality tests: completeness, reliability, timeliness and independent corroboration
  • Early issue spotting from management accounts, bank statements and filings

Participants can assess the commercial factors that support or weaken a borrower's future cash generation.

  • PESTLE analysis identifies external drivers of borrower cash generation
  • Porter's Five Forces tests industry rivalry, entry barriers and supplier power
  • Business model mapping traces revenue engines, cost bases and dependencies
  • Market position assessment compares pricing power, customers and competitors
  • Management assessment tests experience, governance, succession and reporting discipline
  • Concentration analysis measures customer, supplier, product and geographic exposures
  • Scenario triggers link industry shocks to repayment capacity

Participants can interpret financial statements and identify accounting issues relevant to credit risk.

  • Income statement analysis separates recurring earnings from non-recurring gains
  • Balance sheet review identifies liquidity, leverage, maturity and valuation risks
  • Cash flow statement reconciles operating cash, investment and financing movements
  • Accounting policy review tests revenue recognition, capitalisation and related-party transactions
  • Common-size statements reveal structural changes in margins and working capital
  • Trend analysis compares multi-year revenue, profit, cash conversion and debt
  • Audit qualifications and notes expose contingent liabilities and accounting judgements

Participants can calculate and interpret financial ratios that indicate liquidity, solvency and repayment strength.

  • Profitability ratios assess margins, returns and earnings sustainability
  • Liquidity ratios test short-term obligations against realisable current assets
  • Solvency ratios measure debt burden, net worth and capital structure
  • Debt service coverage ratio measures cash available for scheduled debt service
  • Interest coverage and fixed-charge coverage test financing resilience
  • Working capital cycle calculates receivable, inventory and payable days
  • Peer benchmarking distinguishes borrower-specific weakness from sector norms

Participants can evaluate forecast cash flows and quantify the effect of downside assumptions on repayment capacity.

  • Indirect cash flow analysis reconciles EBITDA to operating cash generation
  • 13-week rolling cash forecast models receipts, payroll, suppliers and debt service
  • Working capital assumptions convert sales growth into cash requirements
  • Seasonality analysis aligns borrowing limits with monthly liquidity troughs
  • Base, downside and severe scenarios quantify covenant headroom
  • Sensitivity analysis tests volume, price, margin, collection and interest-rate shocks
  • Sources and uses schedules identify funding gaps and refinancing dependency

Participants can apply core rating and expected loss concepts when forming a credit risk judgement.

  • Internal rating models combine quantitative metrics with qualitative risk factors
  • Probability of default estimates borrower likelihood of non-payment
  • Loss given default links collateral recovery, seniority and workout costs
  • Exposure at default captures drawn balances, commitments and contingent facilities
  • Expected credit loss combines PD, LGD and EAD under IFRS 9
  • Rating overrides require documented rationale, approval and performance tracking
  • Migration analysis monitors grade movement and portfolio deterioration

Participants can assess whether security and guarantees provide reliable secondary repayment protection.

  • Security analysis distinguishes primary repayment from secondary recovery sources
  • Collateral valuation reviews marketability, haircuts, insurance and legal title
  • Guarantee assessment tests guarantor capacity, enforceability and claim conditions
  • Ranking and pari passu clauses determine creditor priority
  • Negative pledge and cross-default clauses protect lender position
  • Conditions precedent control documentation, registrations and pre-disbursement evidence
  • Security perfection confirms charges, filings and custody arrangements

Participants can structure facilities that match borrower needs while controlling identified credit risks.

  • Facility purpose determines tenor, amortisation, repayment source and monitoring intensity
  • Term loans, revolving facilities and overdrafts match distinct funding needs
  • Financial covenants set measurable limits for leverage, coverage and liquidity
  • Information covenants specify reporting frequency, content and certification
  • Pricing incorporates credit grade, capital usage, tenor and collateral
  • Repayment schedules align instalments with forecast cash generation
  • Credit approval papers present recommendation, rationale, exceptions and conditions

Participants can monitor credit performance and escalate emerging risks before repayment failure occurs.

  • Post-disbursement monitoring compares actual results with approved forecasts and covenants
  • Borrowing base certificates control availability against eligible receivables and inventory
  • Covenant testing identifies breaches, cures, waivers and escalation requirements
  • Early warning indicators flag arrears, excesses, declining turnover and management changes
  • Watchlist grading formalises heightened monitoring and remedial actions
  • Annual reviews refresh financial analysis, ratings, security and facility terms
  • Portfolio concentration reports aggregate sector, obligor, geography and product exposures

Participants can diagnose problem credits and select proportionate restructuring, recovery and escalation actions.

  • Problem-credit diagnosis separates temporary stress from structural repayment failure
  • Cash preservation actions prioritise collections, expenditure controls and stakeholder communication
  • Forbearance options assess rescheduling, interest-only periods and covenant resets
  • Restructuring viability tests revised cash flows, sponsor support and exit prospects
  • Recovery strategies compare consensual workout, enforcement, insolvency and asset sales
  • Impairment staging identifies significant increases in credit risk under IFRS 9
  • Action plans assign owners, milestones, reporting triggers and escalation routes

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Credit appraisal memorandum template
  2. Financial ratio analysis worksheet
  3. 13-week cash flow forecast model
  4. Facility covenant design checklist
  5. Collateral and guarantee assessment checklist
  6. Credit monitoring and watchlist plan

Who should attend

  • Credit Analysts — assess borrower risk and prepare evidence-based lending recommendations
  • Relationship Managers — originate facilities while identifying repayment and structuring risks
  • Credit Risk Officers — review ratings, exceptions, covenants and approval submissions
  • Commercial Lenders — improve appraisal quality for working capital and term lending
  • Loan Review Officers — test portfolio quality, policy compliance and early warning signals
  • Corporate Finance Managers — understand lender expectations when preparing borrowing requests

Skills and tools covered

Credit risk assessmentFinancial statement analysisCash flow forecastingLoan structuringCollateral evaluationPortfolio monitoring

Tools and standards

Five Cs of Credit, IFRS 9, Basel III, Porter's Five Forces

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short technical briefings followed by structured analysis of commercial lending cases. Participants review borrower accounts, management information, bank statements, forecast assumptions, security details and proposed facility terms. Group work applies ratio analysis, cash flow forecasting, rating logic, covenant design and monitoring decisions to lending scenarios. Credit committee simulations require participants to defend recommendations, identify exceptions and respond to challenge. Individual application planning helps participants adapt the templates and methods to their own credit approval and review processes.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic familiarity with business finance, including income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements. Experience in banking, lending, treasury, corporate finance, accounting or credit administration is useful, but specialist credit analysis experience is not required. Participants should be comfortable working with percentages, financial ratios and spreadsheet-style calculations. The course does not require prior knowledge of IFRS 9 modelling, Basel capital rules, legal drafting, valuation qualifications or advanced financial modelling. Institution-specific credit policy knowledge is helpful but not assumed.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should understand basic financial statements and be comfortable with ratios and percentage calculations. Prior experience in lending or credit risk is useful but not essential; the course builds the appraisal process from first principles.

Bring a calculator and, if permitted by your employer, anonymised examples of credit proposals, financial statements or monitoring reports. A laptop is useful for working with financial schedules, particularly for live online delivery.

It is designed primarily for credit analysts, relationship managers, commercial lenders, credit risk officers and loan review staff. Corporate finance managers who prepare borrowing requests will also benefit from understanding lender analysis.

Financial analysis courses may focus broadly on company performance, while financial modelling courses focus on building spreadsheet models. This course applies financial analysis specifically to lending decisions, facility structure, collateral, covenants, monitoring and recovery.

Participants can use the appraisal memorandum structure, ratio worksheet, cash forecast model and monitoring checklist in credit submissions and annual reviews. The methods also support stronger questions during borrower meetings and credit committee discussions.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides approximately 6.5 contact hours. The five days progress from credit fundamentals and financial analysis through forecasting, ratings, security, structuring, monitoring and problem-credit decisions.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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