The Role

The Head, Credit & Market Risk will provide strategic leadership in identifying, assessing, monitoring, and mitigating credit, market, and financial risks across Produce for Lagos's operations, investments, and commercial activities.

Reporting directly to the Chief Risk Officer, the successful candidate will establish a robust enterprise-wide credit and market risk management framework that supports sound lending decisions, protects corporate assets, enhances liquidity, and safeguards the organization's financial position.

The role requires a highly analytical risk professional with extensive experience in corporate credit analysis, infrastructure finance, treasury risk, commodity markets, investment risk, and enterprise risk management. The successful candidate will work closely with Finance, Treasury, Commercial, Investment, Legal, Operations, and Executive Management to ensure that strategic decisions are supported by comprehensive risk intelligence.

Key Responsibilities

Credit Risk Management

Develop and implement P4L's enterprise-wide credit risk management framework.
Establish credit assessment policies, approval processes, and risk appetite guidelines.
Conduct comprehensive credit evaluations for customers, tenants, suppliers, distributors, and strategic partners.
Recommend credit limits, payment terms, collateral requirements, and exposure limits.
Monitor credit portfolios and proactively identify deteriorating credit quality.
Develop strategies to minimize bad debts and improve collections performance.

Market Risk Management

Identify and assess market risks arising from commodity prices, foreign exchange, interest rates, inflation, and macroeconomic conditions.
Monitor agricultural commodity market trends and their impact on business performance.
Develop market risk models and scenario analyses to support strategic decision-making.
Recommend hedging strategies and financial risk mitigation measures where appropriate.
Evaluate the impact of market volatility on investment portfolios and infrastructure projects.

Enterprise Risk Analytics

Develop quantitative risk models, dashboards, and key risk indicators (KRIs).
Conduct stress testing and sensitivity analysis across major business operations.
Prepare enterprise-wide risk reports for Executive Management and the Board.
Monitor emerging risks affecting food security infrastructure, logistics, real estate, and agribusiness operations.
Recommend risk mitigation strategies based on analytical insights.

Investment & Project Risk Assessment

Evaluate financial and commercial risks associated with new infrastructure projects and investments.
Participate in investment due diligence and project financing reviews.
Assess counterparty risk for strategic partnerships and joint ventures.
Review business cases and financial models to ensure risk-adjusted decision-making.
Support investment committees with independent risk opinions.

Portfolio Monitoring

Monitor the overall credit and investment portfolio for concentration risks and exposure limits.
Develop early warning systems for credit deterioration.
Track loan performance, receivables ageing, default trends, and portfolio quality.
Recommend corrective actions to reduce risk exposure.

Policy Development & Governance

Develop and periodically review credit and market risk policies.
Ensure alignment with international risk management standards and regulatory requirements.
Establish governance structures for risk monitoring and reporting.
Promote a strong risk culture throughout the organization.

Regulatory Compliance

Ensure compliance with relevant financial regulations, internal policies, and governance standards.
Support internal and external audit engagements relating to risk management.
Monitor compliance with lending covenants and financing agreements.
Maintain appropriate documentation for risk assessments and approvals.

Stakeholder Management

Collaborate with banks, development finance institutions, investors, insurers, regulators, and financial advisors.
Provide independent risk advice to Executive Management and Board Committees.
Support negotiations involving financing arrangements and strategic commercial transactions.
Represent the organization in engagements relating to financial and risk management matters.

Leadership & Capacity Building

Build and lead a high-performing Credit & Market Risk function.
Mentor and develop risk professionals across the organization.
Promote continuous improvement in risk management methodologies.
Foster collaboration across Finance, Treasury, Legal, Commercial, Operations, and Investment teams.

Qualifications & Skill

Bachelor's Degree in Finance, Economics, Accounting, Statistics, Mathematics, Actuarial Science, Risk Management, or related discipline.
MBA or Master's Degree in Finance, Economics, Risk Management, Business Administration, or related field is highly desirable.
Professional certifications such as CFA, ACA, ACCA, ICAN, or equivalent will be a significant advantage.
Minimum of 12–15 years progressive experience in Credit Risk, Market Risk, Enterprise Risk Management, Treasury Risk, Banking, Infrastructure Finance, or Investment Management.
At least 5 years in a senior management role.
Strong understanding of corporate lending, project finance, structured finance, commodity markets, and financial markets.
Experience in financial modelling, portfolio analysis, stress testing, and quantitative risk analysis.
Strong knowledge of IFRS 9, Basel principles, enterprise risk frameworks, and financial regulations.
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Power BI, ERP systems, and financial modelling software.
Excellent analytical, negotiation, leadership, and presentation skills.