Portfolio Manager, EDC Asset Management at Ecobank Kenya

JOB PURPOSE 

• The Asset Management Business of EDC requires the expertise of a Portfolio Manager for the Portfolio Management unit within Asset Management. He/she will work closely with the Senior Portfolio Manager and other Portfolio Managers with the view of effectively managing the Investment Portfolios of clients in line with their Investment Objectives. The role contributes to the growth of Assets under Management (AUM) and Revenues of the business.
• The role requires both strong technical and leadership capabilities. The Portfolio Manager must have a good grasp of key macroeconomic issues on Inflation, GDP, Exchange Rate Dynamics and their Policy Dynamics. It also requires a strong understanding of in-country financial markets and their execution. Peoples management is a key requirement for this role as he/she is required to manage Investment Analysts, Junior Portfolio Managers, and supervise the work of other Portfolio Managers
• An understanding of Financial Statements of companies and the analysis of these statements is a must. The Portfolio Manager should be able to perform and interpret financial ratios, valuation of companies, debt capacity assessment and Yield curve positioning and analysis.
• The role requires a good understanding of Investment Policy Statements of clients, and he/she is expected to formulate and recommend investment strategies for adoption and implementation subject to the approval of the Investment Committee of EDC.

JOB CONTEXT 

• The role requires the ability to establish and manage relationships with key actors in the financial markets such as Brokers, Treasurers of Banks, Corporate Issuers, Transaction advisors on Equity and Fixed Income issuances, and Key corporate clients such as Insurance Companies, Pensions Fund Trustees, Endowment Funds and Provident Fund Clients.
• Internally, the Portfolio Manager is required to work as the Senior Portfolio Manager to manage key relationships with functional Units such as Compliance, Internal Audit, Sales and Business Development, Middle Office and Operations. It requires being on top of issues and making significant input during Management meetings of respective Asset Management business in- Country.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Portfolio Construction
• Development and or Identification of client’s Investment Objective. The role requires the Portfolio Manager to be able to identify client’s Investment Objectives based on interaction with the Client. This activity covers both institutional and High Net Worth Investors. For pre-determined Portfolios such as the Collective Investment Schemes, he/she is expected to clearly understand the stated investment objective of the scheme and be guided accordingly. He/she must communicate clearly with client to determine their respective desired return and risk tolerance
• Choose the Optimal Asset Classes. Based on the investment objective, he/she is required to determine the most suitable. This asset mix include but not limited to Equities and Fixed Income
• Implementation of Investment Strategies. He/she is expected to develop, recommend and implement investment strategies for portfolios subject to necessary approvals from the Investment Committee.
• Fundamental and Technical Valuation and Analysis
• The Portfolio Manager is expected to lead Equity and Fixed Income Valuation of the Portfolio Management Team. This requires a strong understanding of all key valuation methodologies such as Dividend Discount Model (DDM), Free Cash Flow to the Firm (FCFF), Free Cash Flow to Equity (FCFE), Enterprise Value and other relative valuation Techniques
• Co-ordination of Financial Statement Analysis process of the Portfolio Management. For all key investment holdings, ratio, growth and trend analysis is required to be performed and must be spearheaded by the Senior Portfolio Manager.
• Co-ordinate and lead Macroeconomic analysis of indicators such as Inflation, GDP, Exchange Rate, Government revenues and deficits to discover trends and patterns. This is expected to inform yield curve positioning and the strategy on fixed income asset allocation such as duration limits.
• Investor Meetings and Presentations
• The Portfolio Manager is expected to co-ordinate and develop a calendar for meetings with all key investors of EDC Asset Management. This is to ensure that investors are met at least twice a year. 
• Assist with the preparation of Investor Presentations. These presentations will cover Economic and Financial Market Reviews, Portfolio Reviews (including Key Holdings and asset mix, portfolio performance and attribution), Economic and Market Outlook, Investment Strategy and recommendation. For Pension Fund Trustees and Insurance Firms, this activity is performed on a quarterly basis.
• Portfolio Analytics
• Review Fund Factsheets for all Collective Investment Schemes before approval by Senior Portfolio Manager.
• Perform analysis on Portfolios to discover trends with the view of Rebalancing portfolios. Key analytics required include Sharpe Ratio, Treynor Index, Sortino Ratio etc.
• AuM growth analytics, asset mix dynamics, Counterparty exposure analytics, Large holding analytics and business and revenue line analytics to discover trends and sequence to inform business on areas to improve efficiency
• Credit Assessment and Scoring
• Develop, maintain and improve models for the assessment of Credit Risk. Must be conversant with the CAMEL Model and the parameters required for the assessment of Counterparty credit risk
• Must develop, maintain and improve models for assessing debt capacity of Corporate Note and Bond issuances. Must be comfortable and conversant in forecasting debt service coverage ratios
• Investment Idea Generation
• Must be very involved in the development of investment solutions for clients. This involves extensive study of the market to develop new products geared at meeting client needs
• Work closely with the Sales and Business Development team to fashion investment solutions or products to meet those needs
• Must understand the process of product development which includes working with all key stakeholders such as regulators, senior management and key service providers to ensure the successful launch of new products
• Study investment market to determine gaps in product offerings
• Development of Trade Execution Strategies
• Must be very well vexed in equity market dynamics, following closely price and volume movements to determine the appropriate trading strategies to be adopted. 
• Must work closely with Brokers to gain visibility on the happenings on the exchange to gain visibility on trade dynamics, price discovery and trajectory and mapped out optimal execution strategy
• Develop fixed income trade ideas and strategy with the view improving portfolio performance and minimizing cost of trading. This involves utilizing the skill sets of the investment team to crunch big data to discover patterns and trends in the fixed income market.
• Must work closely with Dealers and Brokers to gain insight on market and yield direction as well as interests for Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) who are key actors on the Fixed Income Market of African Markets
• Board and Committee Meetings
• Must prepare requisite information and reports for Investment Committee (IC) Meetings, Board Meetings of Collective Investment Schemes. This may include, working closely with the Senior Portfolio Managers and Investment Analysts to prepare the requisite reports.
• Must attend and present reports to IC Members and Board members for consideration and approval.
• Work on special reports as requested by IC or the Board of the Fund.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

Experience & Qualifications  

• Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Business, Finance, Mathematics, Statistics and Engineering
• Relevant Regulatory Certification
• Master’s degree in finance, Economics or an MBA is an added advantage
• Professional Certification such as CFA, ACCA, CA, etc is a plus
• At least 3 – 5 years’ experience in Finance and Investments