Johannesburg Associate Principal, M&A Advisory

Job Summary

As an Associate Principal within the M&A (Mergers and Acqusitions) Advisory team, you will play a pivotal role in supporting mergers, acquisitions, capital raisings, and a range of financial advisory services. This position requires strong quantitative and analytical skills to support transaction execution and advisory processes.

You will collaborate closely with senior leadership, engaging in all transaction stages. This collaboration will allow you to develop both strategic execution and client-facing expertise, equipping you with the competencies necessary for progression to senior banking roles.

The role is immersed in fast-paced, dynamic environments where analytical rigour and meticulous attention to detail are critical. Your contributions will directly impact client decision-making and transaction success. This position offers a unique opportunity to grow professionally while contributing to Standard Chartered's M&A footprint across Africa.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Contribution

• Support the development and execution of the overall M&A strategy across the African market, identifying growth opportunities and aligning transactional activities with business objectives.

Transaction Execution and Advisory

• Analyse potential M&A opportunities including financial performance, market positioning, and operational synergies. Structure and develop detailed transaction models, including debt and equity valuations, using diverse methodologies such as discounted cash flow (DCF), comparable company, and precedent transaction analyses.
• Lead the preparation of pitch books, detailed transaction documentation, and client advisory materials, ensuring accuracy and professionalism tailored to client needs. Manage relationships and review deliverables from third-party due diligence providers including financial, legal, and operational specialists.
• Contribute to idea generation and collaboration with colleagues within intra-regional and cross-border contexts to capture new business initiatives and broaden market reach.
• Participate actively in all transaction phases - from initial pitches and client meetings through to deal execution and closure - ensuring high standards of compliance and client service.

Governance and Process Adherence

• Serve as the first line of defence in maintaining rigorous adherence to internal controls, policies, and regulatory frameworks surrounding M&A transactions. Ensure processes are respected and risks are mitigated effectively across all stages of deal execution.

Qualifications and Experience

• A Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business Administration, Accountancy, or a closely related discipline is required to ensure a solid foundation in financial principles and analytical techniques.
• Holding a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation is advantageous, particularly for applicants without an MBA, as it demonstrates a high level of competence in investment management and financial analysis.
• Relevant experience within the mergers and acquisitions arena or in a closely related financial advisory capacity.
• Advanced financial modelling expertise, including building and reviewing complex valuation models for mergers, acquisitions, and capital raising transactions.
• Proficiency in performing valuation analyses using multiple methodologies such as discounted cash flow (DCF), precedent transactions, and comparable companies analysis.
• Ability to effectively communicate complex financial data and strategic concepts to clients and internal stakeholders in both written and verbal formats.
• Experience managing overlapping projects and shifting priorities with a strong organisational skillset.
• Strong interpersonal skills to build rapport and maintain collaborative relationships across teams and with clients at various levels.
• Outstanding quantitative and analytical capabilities, complemented by a creative approach to problem-solving and market insights.
• Excellent proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel for financial analysis and PowerPoint for client presentations.
• Ability to work autonomously with minimal supervision, maintaining high standards under tight deadlines in a dynamic, team-oriented environment.
• Familiarity with deal structuring, due diligence coordination, and regulatory considerations supporting seamless transaction execution.

Skills

• Governance and compliance management.
• Operational risk oversight.
• Strategic analysis and business modelling.
• Market intelligence gathering and interpretation.
• M&A execution management and strategy formulation.

About Standard Chartered

We're an international bank, nimble enough to act, big enough for impact. For more than 170 years, we've worked to make a positive difference for our clients, communities, and each other. We question the status quo, love a challenge and enjoy finding new opportunities to grow and do better than before. If you're looking for a career with purpose and you want to work for a bank making a difference, we want to hear from you. You can count on us to celebrate your unique talents and we can't wait to see the talents you can bring us.

Our purpose, to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, together with our brand promise, to be here for good are achieved by how we each live our valued behaviours. When you work with us, you'll see how we value difference and advocate inclusion.

Together we:

• Do the right thing and are assertive, challenge one another, and live with integrity, while putting the client at the heart of what we do
• Never settle, continuously striving to improve and innovate, keeping things simple and learning from doing well, and not so well
• Are better together, we can be ourselves, be inclusive, see more good in others, and work collectively to build for the long term

What we offer

In line with our Fair Pay Charter, we offer a competitive salary and benefits to support your mental, physical, financial and social wellbeing.

• Core bank funding for retirement savings, medical and life insurance, with flexible and voluntary benefits available in some locations.
• Time-off including annual leave, parental/maternity (20 weeks), sabbatical (12 months maximum) and volunteering leave (3 days), along with minimum global standards for annual and public holiday, which is combined to 30 days minimum.
• Flexible working options based around home and office locations, with flexible working patterns.
• Proactive wellbeing support through Unmind, a market-leading digital wellbeing platform, development courses for resilience and other human skills, global Employee Assistance Programme, sick leave, mental health first-aiders and all sorts of self-help toolkits
• A continuous learning culture to support your growth, with opportunities to reskill and upskill and access to physical, virtual and digital learning.
• Being part of an inclusive and values driven organisation, one that embraces and celebrates our unique diversity, across our teams, business functions and geographies - everyone feels respected and can realise their full potential.