Training the Credit Analyst is an introductory course designed to address the needs of beginning credit analysts and reinforce the credit skills of current credit analysts in all aspects of credit analysis. It begins with a thorough review of the components of financial statements and proceeds into analyzing the financial statements by preparing a financial spread and then interpreting the results.

Course Objective

The objective of this course is to provide the Credit Analyst with analytical skills that can be put to immediate use upon return to their respective banks. They will learn to use proven analytical tools which will enable them to assess the degree of risk prior to recommending approval or declination of a credit request. Another objective of this course is to improve the documentation of commercial loan files which will reduce losses and will be viewed favorably by the regulatory community.

Course Outline

The course will teach how to write effective and comprehensive credit analyses which highlight and detail the important trends shown on the financial spread sheet. Other analytical tools that will be covered in detail include: Cash Flow Analysis; Break-Even Analysis; Ratio Analysis, Financial Projections; Sustainable Growth Rate Calculation; Sensitive Analysis; Industry Comparison Analysis and Loan Grading.

• Know the various types of financial statements and be able to identify the components of financial statements including the Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Statement of Cash Flows, and Reconciliation of Net Worth. 
• Know how to read the Notes to Financial Statements and identify latent Notes which may have a major impact on the operating performance of a credit. 
• Know how to spread the financial statements consistently and interpret ratio analysis so that trends can be identified. 
• Know how to perform a detailed Cash Flow Analysis by calculating the sources and uses of funds from one accounting period to another. 
• Know how to prepare financial projections based upon assumptions provided by the borrower, then to test those assumptions by utilizing sensitivity analysis. 
• Know how to calculate the Sustainable Growth Rate and understand how varying rates of growth will impact the financial condition of the borrower. 

Target Audience

• CEO/CFO
• Board Members
• Internal Auditors
• Compliance Professionals
• Operational professionals
• Finance Professionals