In order to give a fillip to industrial growth and overall economies, banks and financial institutions have over the years considerably simplified their credit policies. However, to make the lending secure, most financial companies rely on good credit assessment systems. A credit analyst is responsible for conducting a thorough credit assessment and evaluating the risk-to-return ratio.

Credit Analyst Functions

Credit analysts handle very important tasks for banks, financial institutions, credit rating agencies and investment companies. Some of their key jobs include:

1. The foremost task of a credit analyst is to carefully study the lending proposal and focus on the critical points or clauses in the proposal.

2. Although this is not a very complicated process for individuals or small companies, the process can get very complex for large companies presenting huge proposals.

3. The analysts must be adept at risk management and must scrutinize the risk bearing capacity of the borrower vis-à-vis the credit applied for.

4. Credit analysts evaluate the financial status of the borrower by analyzing financial data like financial statement, cash flow statements and accounts.

5. Developing credit information models so that it becomes possible to predict patterns and trends with the help of specialist statistical software.

6. Assessing the credit worthiness of the client companies is the basic function of a credit analyst on which the bank or financial institution decides whether to lend money or not.

7. The credit analysts also keep a track of the repayment record of the customer. If customers do not have a good track record then they recommend the particular action to be taken against the defaulter.

8. Based on the financial condition of the client, the analysts decide whether to extend or reduce the credit limit.

9. As a part of their regular work, credit analysts also have to study the legal, compliance and market-risk-related issues involved in the lending process.

10. They also need to maintain good public relations with existing and potential customers to increase the number of borrowers and thereby profit of the lending institution.

11. The credit analysts are a link between the account managers, product specialists, other staff members and the customer.

These are some of the basic tasks handled by a credit analyst. It is very important for credit analysts to provide high quality service in the form of perfect credit guidance and recommendations.

Credit analysts use various mathematical and statistical tools and software for studying the credit worthiness of a client. The credit analyst also needs to present detailed reports to the client explaining the lending policies and the inherent terms and conditions.

Salary

The salary structure of a credit analyst depends upon the experience, industry and the location. However, for fresh analysts usually start with an average salary of $28,000. Medium level analysts earn an average salary of $50,000 to $60, 000. The senior and highly experienced salary can look to earn a package anywhere between $75,000 up to $110,000.

Working for large volume accounts is important and must be the aim of all candidates to add value to their credit analyst resumes. While making a job switch, credit analysts must follow sample resume guidelines to make the required impact.