Crédit Agricole CIB is among the best positioned banks worldwide in the structured finance sector and offered me the assurance of learning about this exciting field under the best possible conditions and participating in some large financing projects.

I've been assigned to assist the Telecom Finance project management team. Telecoms account for roughly 90% of our clientele. We mainly work with foreign operators on a range of diversification strategies, including LBOA leveraged buy-out is the acquisition of all a company's shares financed largely by the borrowed funds., debt restructuring and project financing.

60% of my mission consists of modelling cash flows by designing Excel spreadsheets. Practically speaking, this task involves correlating a client's financial data with corresponding market segment data in order to derive a forecast with several scenarios. Through this forecasting technique, the Bank is able to establish the client's reimbursement capacity, which allows proposing the most appropriate financing solutions. These models serve as a working tool when conducting negotiations with clients and for in-house use, especially during the credit application process.
Another major assignment is to prepare credit applications. I'm heavily involved in conducting clients' financial analyses: balance sheets, income statements, information summaries focusing on the company and its market segment.
 

I really appreciate the exposure to various types of financing strategies. At my level, I don't participate in negotiating the price of debt or the kind of structure to be implemented on behalf of clients. Yet I'm learning a tremendous amount since my fellow team members always take the time to explain to me what they're doing and why, as well as the stakes involved in the transaction. This willingness to share has provided me with an understanding well beyond the scope of my mission.

We need to propose customised financing solutions that take into account both client and market constraints. Moreover, the sector of structured finance introduces plenty of creativity. Each client is unique, eliminating any possibility of a standard solution and instead developing personalised approaches. This continual reassessment is another appealing aspect.

Last but not least, I'd also like to underscore the excellent coaching the Bank's managerial staff have provided not only to me but all interns. As of the first month, emphasis is placed on training and throughout the internship the team remained available to answer my questions, which has been extremely valuable and no doubt contributed to the great amount of trust I felt during subsequent missions.