Manager, Banking Legal Services (Banking & Finance) - Francophone

Main Responsibilities

Reporting to the Head, Banking Legal Services (Banking & Finance- Francophone), the Manager (Banking Legal Services- Banking & Finance Francophone) will assist  the Legal Department in ensuring that it contributes fully to the Bank’s mission of stimulating a consistent expansion of and diversification of African trade so as to rapidly increase Africa’s share of global trade, while operating as a first class, profit oriented, socially responsible financial institution and a Centre of Excellence in African trade matters.

Key Responsibilities:

1.     Providing advice to the Bank and its subsidiaries on a broad range of banking and finance matters to ensure delivery of tailored, commercially focused legal solutions.

 2.     Providing legal and strategic advice to the Bank and its subsidiaries entities on special projects/initiatives and identifying potential legal risks

 3.     Participating in the planning, organisation and implementation of legal support for business activities of the Bank, research of relevant precedents, presentation of appropriate solutions.

 4.     Providing guidance on the proper application and interpretation of laws and regulations as applicable to the Bank’s business and ensuring adequacy of controls to mitigate legal and other risks or concerns that may arise thereto

 5.     Providing assistance in connection with the formulation and implementation of effective legal processes to ensure timely delivery of transaction documentation. and facilitating the development of appropriate forms of standardised documentation/legal precedents.

 6.     Serving as subject matter expert and key legal advisor to business stakeholders by providing counsel on all aspects of legal matters related to the Bank’s loan products.

 7.     Serving as Legal stakeholder on internal committees/working groups, managing special projects and engaging with advocacy efforts relating to the Bank’s development mandate.

 8.     Coordinating the engagement of external legal counsel in order to ensure value for money in the procurement of legal services

 9.     Providing legal advice to management and staff in all areas of the Bank’s activities and proffering solutions to legal problems, constraints, risks, options, consequences and approaches

 10.  Providing advice in connection with the Bank borrowings in the international capital and money markets, including the review and negotiation of legal documentation required for the implementation of the Bank’s borrowing strategy and capital markets transactions

 11.  Providing legal advice on the Bank’s Asset and Liability Management procedures and policies and participating in the work of the Bank’s Asset and Liability Management Committee and its working groups.

 12.  Providing legal advice on equity participations, grants and other financing and co-financing agreements with other multilateral and bilateral financial institutions and related arrangements.

 13.  Representing the Bank internally and externally in negotiation, disputes, consultations and other proceedings that require legal representation

14.  Working with internal staff and external parties as required by management;

15.  Conducting deal appraisals (with provision of input) and legal due diligence exercises on proposed transactions;

16.  Preparing a variety of legal documentation including transaction documentation designed to protect the interests of the Bank as lender, borrower and in other capacities.

17.  Negotiating a wide range of legal documents with the Bank’s transaction counterparties, under the guidance of management;

18.  Providing legal advice to management and staff in all areas of the Bank’s activities and proffering solutions to legal problems, constraints, risks, options, consequences and approaches.

19.  Reviewing documentation and assessing legal matters arising from the various financing and non-financing activities of the Bank;

20.  Conducting, managing and monitoring the legal workstreams of ongoing transactions.

Compliance Responsibilities

1.     Understanding and adhering to the Bank's AML, Regulatory and Conduct Compliance policies and procedures, notably:

(i)     Staff Handbook (has code of conduct provisions)

(ii)    Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter Financing of Terrorism and Counter Proliferation Financing

(iii)   Conflicts of Interest and Policies on Staff Involvement in External Engagements/Activities

(iv)  Anti-Bribery & Corruption

(v)    Insider Trading Guidelines

2.     Reporting any suspicious or non-compliant activities or matters relating to the Bank’s staff or the customers to the Compliance Department.

3.     Completing the Annual Compliance Training/Assessment.

Requirements

Requirements

• Master’s degree in French Civil Law from a recognized university.
• Minimum of 8 years of professional legal practice and experience, with particular emphasis on the banking and financial services industry.
• Experience in handling documentation related to cross-border trade and project finance transactions, particularly in the following areas:
• Structured trade and corporate finance
• Project and asset-based finance
• Guarantees and specialised finance
• Sovereign lending
• Private equity
• Good knowledge of banking practices in Africa and the ability to communicate and function effectively in a culturally diverse and change-oriented environment.
• Ability to interact with senior officials of banks, corporates and governments, and to present legal advice on various management issues to the Bank’s senior management.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Knowledge of one or more of the Bank’s other working languages is an added advantage: French, Arabic or Portuguese.
• Strong drafting skills across a variety of legal documents, with the ability to communicate complex issues clearly and concisely.
• Familiarity with trade and project finance issues, treasury matters and transnational transactions.
• Ability to quickly grasp the essence, content and implications of the Bank’s constitutive documents in order to provide sound legal advice.
• Ability to review documents and provide advice under strict deadlines.
• Strong negotiation skills and the ability to work with legal and non-legal professionals to develop innovative solutions to conflicting interests and positions.
• Ability to organise and manage human resources to achieve goals.

Proficiency Level

Leadership Skills

Specialists or managers should be able to:

• Oversee teams and manage transactions from a legal perspective throughout the credit value chain.
• Advise internal and external stakeholders and staff.
• Contribute to innovation in business practices.
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders, representing Afreximbank Group at third-party events and meetings.
• Contribute to negotiations, primarily in a technical capacity, with firm-wide impact.
• Proactively explore opportunities for technical or innovative advancements for the Bank.
• Influence within their own team, and occasionally beyond their team, to drive and achieve results.

Interpersonal Skills

The role requires the ability to:

• Strengthen internal and, where relevant, external relationships.
• Mentor junior colleagues and share technical knowledge to foster collaboration and support project outcomes.
• Influence decisions at the functional level.
• Contribute to external negotiations using technical knowledge where required.
• Articulate complex ideas clearly and succinctly.
• Manage the delivery of projects and communicate information effectively to senior staff members.

Problem Solving and Business Impact

The role requires the ability to:

• Use experience and deeper technical knowledge to identify core issues.
• Analyse complex data and synthesise information to support the development and implementation of strategic solutions.
• Support technical initiatives and contribute to strategy.
• Occasionally contribute new ideas to drive innovation.

Supporting Afreximbank’s Mandate

The role requires:

• A substantial understanding of Afreximbank Group’s products and services.
• A clear understanding of how the role contributes to Afreximbank Group’s values and mission.
• Good knowledge of the Continent and African Diaspora’s political, economic and trade landscape.
• The ability to offer well-informed opinions on relevant matters internally and to external counterparts.
• The ability to identify practical ways in which Afreximbank Group’s values and mission can be cascaded to junior colleagues and external parties.

Key Competencies

Self-Starter with Minimal Supervision

• Proactive, motivated and able to manage tasks with minimal oversight.
• Timely, detail-oriented and sensitive to deadlines, ensuring that assigned tasks are delivered to the required quality.

Team Collaboration and Communication

• Strong team player with good interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary and multicultural team.
• Ability to influence teams and build networks across boundaries.
• High level of emotional intelligence and emotional resilience, with the ability to work effectively in a diverse legal team.

Leadership Experience

• Strong analytical skills.
• Ability to think strategically, analyse and synthesise information from diverse sources, and draw conclusions from complex materials and publications.
• Experience in communicating complex transactional and legal risk management issues to the Board, Executive Management and external stakeholders.
• High level of emotional intelligence and emotional resilience.

Skills, Knowledge and Attitude

• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Knowledge of the Bank’s other working languages is an added advantage: French, Arabic and Portuguese.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office programs, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook.
• Familiarity with legal risk management systems.
• Good project management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks simultaneously under tight deadlines.

Internal Change Agent

• Ability to function in a change-oriented environment.
• Good knowledge of legal risk management practices in Africa and globally.
• Ability to articulate and promote the Bank’s legal risk management narrative to various internal stakeholders.

Afreximbank’s Core Values

• Commitment to Africa and supporting the emancipation and empowerment of Africans
• Uncompromising integrity
• Passion for learning and drive
• Teamwork
• Trust and respect for the individual
• Innovation, excellence and flexibility
• Professionalism and responsiveness

Benefits

• Private Health Insurance
• Training & Development
• Performance Bonus