Direct lending / private credit case study

Hi all,

I have a case study interview at a direct lender coming up shortly and wondered if I could ask fellow WSO followers on what to expect and how to think about laying out my presentation.

I think that the transaction will likely be a buy-and-build play or a carve out, and would have a significant capex facility.

I come from a debt advisory background and so whilst I feel that I have a good grasp on fundamentals of companies / credit metrics, I have less experience in 'structuring a transaction' from a lenders' perspective. This will obviously be key point of the case study and so any additional guidance on structuring / analysing debt capacity would be greatly appreciated.

Secondly, I wanted to get people's view on FCCR covenants. I've never actually seen this in one of my deals (the joy of cov-lite), and wondered how this has been calculated in the past? (I have seen DSCR and IC covenants) There seems to be a number of differences in the definitions that I have read.

Thank you in advance, Dave

5 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Hmm... I'll attempt to tackle this. Your questions aren't super specific, but I'd expect a CIM and then you build a model + a 3-5 page write-up. Quick background, investment merits, risks & mitigants, and brief model outputs. In terms of structuring, it'll be firm specific. Try to figure out where the firm invests in the cap structure, what rates they typically recieve, etc. and base it off that. Another idea is to scan DebtWire or any other research platform and see what comps' leverage profiles look like. I've interviewed candidates in this position before, and the one thing you are assessing (aside from not fucking up the model) is their ability to sift through what's important and what isn't. How are they thinking about the business and can they accurately identify the key downside levers.

As for FCCR, honestly people calculate it different ways. I don't think you will get penalized here, but the one I see the most is: (EBITDA - capex - mgmt fee - taxes) / (Interest + Mandatory Amort).

I am happy to answer more specific questions on here and/or hop on the phone if you PM me.

 

Can you please share if this is generally an LBO or DCF? Like in the LBO mostly its IRR and MOIC, but do we also do FCCR/ICR? etc? And if you have any examples that you can share would be a great deal.

 

Ipsam perspiciatis esse deserunt suscipit nostrum. Voluptas libero aut corporis nihil sequi modi rerum aut.

Nihil nemo est ut libero libero nihil. Molestiae libero cum ex voluptatem. Rem odit non magni perspiciatis id amet. Maxime enim eos velit eos quis molestias doloremque. Magni aspernatur et autem. Vel nihil eveniet aspernatur qui in aut accusamus.

Laudantium aut veniam nemo itaque illum. Magni asperiores neque autem autem quos. Repellat eligendi in consectetur. Sit officia incidunt dolor non voluptas. Laboriosam omnis molestiae dolorum qui soluta molestiae dolores.

Culpa dolorem quia omnis fugiat minus tempora et. Deserunt dolores sunt vero explicabo sit.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”