Empowering Africa’s tomorrow, together…one story at a time.
With over 100 years of rich history and strongly positioned as a local bank with regional and international expertise, a career with our family offers the opportunity to be part of this exciting growth journey, to reset our future and shape our destiny as a proudly African group.
Job Summary
The Structured Trade & Commodity Finance (STCF) team supports complex commodity and trade finance transactions across Africa. We are looking for intellectually curious, highly analytical and commercially minded individuals who are passionate about understanding how businesses operate, how trade flows move across markets, and how risk can be structured and managed effectively.This role is not suited to someone who simply executes tasks. We are looking for individuals who ask questions, challenge assumptions, investigate issues thoroughly and take ownership of delivering high-quality work. The successful candidate will work directly with senior transactors, supporting the origination, structuring, execution, monitoring and management of structured trade finance transactions across multiple sectors and jurisdictions.
This is an ideal opportunity for candidates who enjoy combining analytical thinking, research, financial analysis and problem-solving in a fast-paced, deal-driven environment.
What We Are Looking For
We are deliberately seeking candidates from diverse analytical backgrounds. Experience in banking, finance or trade finance is advantageous, but we are equally interested in exceptional candidates who have demonstrated strong analytical capability through other disciplines.
Relevant Fields of Study
• Economics
• Actuarial Science
Business Science
• Data Science
• Mathematics
• Agricultural Economics
• Statistics
• Psychology
• Engineering
• Commerce or Business-related disciplines
The Successful Candidate Will Demonstrate
Intellectual Curiosity: You naturally ask “why?” and enjoy digging beneath the surface to understand what is really happening in a business, sector or transaction.
Analytical Thinking: You enjoy working with data, financial information and complex problems, and can convert analysis into practical insights.
Commercial Awareness: You are interested in markets, trade, commodities, business models and the factors that drive commercial success and failure.
Ownership & Accountability: You take pride in producing accurate, high-quality work and are willing to go the extra mile to ensure the job is done properly.
Strong Communication Skills: You can articulate complex ideas clearly and produce concise, well-structured written reports and recommendations.
Growth Mindset: You have a strong desire to learn, develop specialist expertise and build a career in structured trade and commodity finance.
Job Description
Transaction Analysis & Deal Support
· Support senior transactors in the evaluation, structuring, execution and monitoring of structured trade and commodity finance transactions.
· Conduct detailed analysis of financial statements, commodity flows, trade cycles, working capital requirements and transaction cash flows.
· Assist in developing transaction structures, identifying key risks and proposing appropriate mitigants.
· Support the preparation of credit applications, approval papers, transaction memoranda and committee presentations.
Research & Commercial Analysis
· Conduct industry, sector, market and counterparty research to identify emerging trends, risks and opportunities.
· Develop a deep understanding of commodity value chains, supply chains, trade flows and market dynamics across African and international markets.
· Investigate anomalies, challenge assumptions and provide well-reasoned insights to support transaction decisions.
· Monitor geopolitical, macroeconomic, regulatory and industry developments that may affect clients and portfolios.
Credit & Risk Assessment
· Analyse client financial performance, liquidity, leverage, profitability and cash flow generation.
· Evaluate borrowing base structures, collateral pools, security packages, insurance arrangements and operational controls.
· Assist in identifying early warning signals and emerging risks within the portfolio.
· Contribute to annual reviews, credit renewals, covenant monitoring, deviation requests and breach assessments.
Portfolio & Facility Management
· Support the ongoing monitoring and management of approved facilities.
· Track conditions precedent, conditions subsequent, covenants and collateral requirements.
· Assist with service provider reviews, site inspections, collateral monitoring and portfolio reporting.
· Help ensure facilities remain compliant with approved terms, internal policies and regulatory requirements.
This role offers exposure to:
· Complex cross-border trade and commodity transactions.
· Some of Africa’s largest commodity producers, traders, processors and distributors.
· Structured lending, risk management and transaction structuring.
· Senior dealmakers and industry specialists.
· A clear development path into a transactor and deal origination role.
Education
Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)Absa Bank Limited is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. In compliance with the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups whose appointments will contribute towards achievement of equitable demographic representation of our workforce profile and add to the diversity of the Bank.
Absa Bank Limited reserves the right not to make an appointment to the post as advertised