Head, Credit & Lending Job

Strait Sahara Microfinance Bank is a fast-paced start-up Microfinance Bank, led by a group of talented, passionate, and skilled individuals who take the mission to re-invent banking using innovation and technology to provide high-quality service seriously. The goal is to empower generations by providing our customers with specific products and services to help them increase their net worth.

Job Location: Ikoyi, Lagos
Employment Type: Full-time

Job Description

• The Head, Credit & Lending will be responsible for establishing and managing the Bank’s end-to-end credit and lending function, including credit policy development, loan origination, underwriting, portfolio management, and recovery strategy, in line with regulatory requirements and business objectives.
• The role involves designing credit frameworks, processes, and governance structures to support sustainable loan growth, portfolio quality, and risk-adjusted returns.
• The successful candidate will provide strategic direction on lending activities while ensuring strong credit discipline, effective delinquency management, and alignment with the Bank’s risk appetite within a startup digital microfinance banking environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement the Bank’s credit and lending framework from inception.
• Design and maintain credit policies, underwriting standards, and approval processes.
• Oversee loan origination, appraisal, approval, and disbursement processes.
• Establish and manage digital lending models and credit scoring methodologies.
• Drive growth of the Bank’s loan portfolio across target segments (retail, SME, micro-lending).
• Monitor portfolio performance, including PAR, NPL ratios, and loan quality indicators.
• Design and implement collections, delinquency management, and recovery strategies.
• Ensure proper credit documentation, collateral management, and compliance standards.
• Work closely with Risk Management to ensure alignment with risk appetite and credit limits.
• Collaborate with Technology and Product teams to build automated lending processes.
• Ensure compliance with CBN credit guidelines and microfinance banking regulations.
• Prepare and present credit reports to Executive Management and Board Credit Committee.
• Establish and manage relationships with credit bureaus and other data providers.

Requirements
Education:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration, or related disciplines
• Professional certifications such as CFA, ACCA, ACA, or Credit Risk certifications are an added advantage.

Experience

• Minimum of 12 years of experience in Credit, Lending, or Risk Management within banking or financial services
• At least 7 years in a senior credit leadership role
• Strong experience in loan portfolio management, underwriting, and credit policy development
• Experience in microfinance banking or digital lending/fintech environment is highly desirable
• Demonstrated ability to develop credit frameworks, systems, and processes independently.

Other Requirements:

• High level of integrity and sound professional judgment
• Strong sense of ownership and accountability
• Ability to operate effectively in a startup environment with evolving structures
• Capacity to build and implement credit and lending systems from ground zero
• Strong leadership and team development capability.

Skills:

• Strong expertise in credit risk assessment and loan underwriting
• Knowledge of digital lending models and credit scoring systems
• Experience in loan portfolio management and performance monitoring
• Understanding of collections, recovery, and delinquency management
• Strong analytical and financial evaluation skills
• Knowledge of CBN regulations and microfinance lending practices
• Ability to design and implement credit processes and frameworks
• Strong decision-making and problem-solving skills
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management ability.

Remuneration

• Performance-based incentives
• Opportunity to lead a core revenue-generating function in a high-growth fintech bank.