Corporate Ratings - Head of European Leveraged Finance, Managing Director

Fitch Ratings is currently seeking a Managing Director, Head of European Leveraged Finance based out of our London office. The Head of European Leveraged Finance will act as a key thought partner to our analytical ratings teams, contributing deep credit expertise and judgment on complex and highly leveraged issuers. This role is a senior analytical and market-facing position focused on leveraged finance issuers across broadly syndicated loans (BSL), high yield bonds, and private credit. The role involves close collaboration with analysts to help shape credit views, particularly on more challenging credits and leveraged finance structures, while serving as a senior and visible representative of Fitch to issuers, bankers, private equity sponsors, and other market participants. The role involves managing a small team of leveraged finance specialists. It requires close collaboration with the US Head of Leveraged finance, and a directive role in research and rating criteria development.

How You’ll Make an Impact:

• Act as a senior subject‑matter expert on leveraged finance, providing guidance and insight to analytical teams on complex, highly levered, capital structures.
• Contribute to the development and refinement of credit views and ratings criteria through discussion, analysis, and challenge, particularly in stressed, distressed, or restructuring situations.
• Provide leadership and direction to a team of 5 leveraged finance professionals, fostering a collaborative, inclusive environment focused on analytical excellence, sound credit judgment, and professional development.
• Serve as a visible senior presence in external meetings with corporate management teams, private equity sponsors, bankers, and other intermediaries.
• Articulate the agency’s analytical perspectives on leveraged finance trends, structures, and credit risk in meetings, roundtables, and published research.
• Support analytical consistency and best practices through mentorship, coaching, and knowledge sharing across teams.
• Partner with senior leadership on thought leadership, market outreach, and broader leveraged finance initiatives.

You May be a Good Fit if You Have:

• Minimum 10–15 years of relevant experience in leveraged finance, corporate credit analysis, capital markets, or related credit-focused roles.
• Deep understanding of leveraged capital structures, documentation, cash flow analysis, and recovery considerations.
• Experience analyzing or advising on distressed credits, restructurings, and downside scenarios.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to clearly explain nuanced credit issues to both internal and external audiences.
• Strong judgment, collaborative mindset, and comfort operating in a senior, highly visible role.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a dynamic, market-driven environment.
• CFA or other relevant professional credential preferred.

What Would Make You Stand Out:

• Extensive experience across leveraged finance markets, including BSL, high yield bonds, and private credit.
• A strong credit‑oriented background, ideally from a credit rating agency, buy‑side, sell‑side, or ratings‑adjacent advisory platform.
• Demonstrated experience with distressed debt, restructurings, and liability management transactions, and the ability to assess credit implications across stressed scenarios.
• Working familiarity with CLO market dynamics and investor considerations as they relate to the leveraged loan ecosystem (deep structuring experience not required).
• Familiarity with ratings agency frameworks, methodologies, and workflow is a strong plus.
• A track record of providing senior‑level analytical judgment and mentoring analysts on complex credit situations.
• Strong credibility and relationships across leveraged finance market participants, including issuers, PE sponsors, and arranging banks.

Why Choose Fitch:

• Hybrid Work Environment: 3 days a week in office required.
• A Culture of Learning & Mobility: Dedicated trainings, leadership development and mentorship programs designed to ensure that your time at Fitch will be a continuous learning opportunity.
• Investing in Your Future: Retirement planning and tuition reimbursement programs that empower you to achieve your short and long‑term goals.
• Promoting Health & Wellbeing: Comprehensive healthcare offerings that enable physical, mental, financial, social, and occupational wellbeing.
• Supportive Parenting Policies: Family‑friendly policies, including a generous global parental leave plan, designed to help you balance career and family life effectively.
• Inclusive Work Environment: A collaborative workplace where all voices are valued, with Employee Resource Groups that unite and empower our colleagues around the globe.
• Dedication to Giving Back: Paid volunteer days, matched funding for donations and ample opportunities to volunteer in your community.

At Fitch, AI is embedded in how we work every day—supporting smarter decision‑making, streamlining workflows, and enabling new ways to create value for our business and clients. Intelligent solutions are increasingly part of our day‑to‑day operations, helping teams work more efficiently and think differently as we continue to evolve. We’re looking for colleagues who are comfortable operating in an AI‑enabled environment—or who are curious, adaptable, and eager to build their AI literacy over time. We value professionals who embrace technology as part of continuous learning and who are committed to using it thoughtfully to enhance how work gets done. Fitch is committed to providing global securities markets with objective, timely, independent and forward‑looking credit opinions. To protect Fitch’s credibility and reputation, our employees must take every precaution to avoid conflicts of interest or any appearance of a conflict of interest. Should you be successful in the recruitment process at Fitch Ratings you will be asked to declare any securities holdings and other potential conflicts prior to commencing employment. If you, or your immediate family, have any holdings that may conflict with your work responsibilities, you may be asked to divest yourself of them before beginning work. Fitch is proud to be an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status, and other statuses protected by law.