Mandate
Document credit box, authority, capital and timing.
Debt
Lender & Credit-Fund Advisory
Market-entry, security and enforcement advisory for credit funds and lenders deploying into the GCC.
Image · Lender & Credit-Fund Advisory
Overview
International private credit funds entering the GCC face court-driven enforcement measured in years, security agents required by licensing rules, escrow regimes that dictate where loan proceeds flow and insolvency frameworks that remain largely untested. Matchpoint advises credit funds, family offices and institutional lenders on security packages, escrow-compliant structures, local agent arrangements and realistic recovery analysis — and originates qualified GCC borrowers matched to their mandates.
As part of our Debt practice, Matchpoint Partners has originated and led $2+ billion of transactions across four continents, and every debt mandate is led by a partner, from first call to close.
The central mandate decision. Define the credit thesis, target return and downside protections before committing time to full underwriting. A lender should know which risks are accepted, which are mitigated and which require a condition or pricing response.
What capital providers or counterparties will test
Quality of earnings, cash conversion, leverage, collateral, legal structure, sponsor support, management capability, sector risk, covenant design and recoveries under stress.
How the mandate is structured
The review can support origination screening, independent underwriting, term-sheet design, club or syndication strategy and post-close monitoring. Independence and access to primary evidence should be agreed at the outset.
Execution priorities
Use a staged review with early red flags, a documented base and downside case, and a decision memo that ties every material risk to structure, pricing, covenant or decline.
Prepare before approaching the market
- Borrower information pack and management access
- Integrated credit model and sensitivities
- Security, structure and legal-entity map
- Credit paper with conditions and monitoring plan
How Matchpoint helps
Our role on lender & credit-fund advisory mandates
- Security-package and enforcement-risk structuring (UAE & KSA)
- CBUAE-licensed security-agent arrangements for foreign lenders
- Escrow-compliant disbursement and cash-control structures
- Qualified deal flow originated to your mandate and ticket size
Track record
Select transactions
Representative debt mandates led by Matchpoint partners.
Infrastructure · Nordics
$100m
Data centre construction & refinancing facility.
Real Estate · UAE
$300m
Ultra-premium land bank — Sukuk + private credit at ~8.5%.
Real Estate · Dubai
$190m
Receivables financing with tripartite escrow.
Industrials · UAE
$15m
Working capital via invoice discounting & supplier finance.
Matchpoint Insights
Research relevant to this area
Original analysis and decision frameworks from the Matchpoint team.
Private Credit · GCC
The Rise of GCC Private Credit: Why Direct Lending Is Reshaping Mid-Market Financing in the Gulf
Private Credit · MezzanineThe Mezzanine Gap: Filling the Space Between Senior Debt and Equity in GCC Real Assets
Special Situations · CreditSpecial Situations Credit in MENA: Pricing Distress, Complexity and Time Pressure
Questions, answered
Lender & Credit-Fund Advisory — frequently asked questions
Onshore mortgages must be held by a CBUAE-licensed institution; foreign lenders appoint a licensed security agent — a structure we arrange routinely.
Onshore foreclosure is court-driven and can exceed twelve months; underwriting should reflect it, and our structures are designed to avoid ever needing it.
Yes, but onshore mortgages must be held by a CBUAE-licensed institution, so foreign lenders lend through structures with a licensed security agent — a standard arrangement we help put in place.
Senior secured real-asset lending typically prices in the mid-teens, with mezzanine and special situations higher — a premium that reflects bank retrenchment and structuring complexity rather than weak credits.
Enforcement timelines: onshore foreclosure is court-driven and can exceed twelve months, and self-help clauses are void — structures should be designed so enforcement is never the plan.
Matchpoint originates senior, mezzanine, hybrid and structured debt from regional banks, international lenders and private credit funds, structured around your transaction. Tickets range from USD 5m to USD 500m+.
Private credit is non-bank lending from specialist funds, typically senior or unitranche, offering speed and flexibility. We maintain relationships with private credit funds active in the GCC and India.
Yes. We structure Sukuk and Shariah-compliant private credit, including blended structures pairing a Sukuk tranche with conventional debt.
Engagements ordinarily combine a retainer with a success fee. Terms are agreed in writing before work begins and calibrated to the mandate’s size, scope and complexity.
Most mandates reach a first term sheet within 30 days, depending on diligence readiness and structure; closing follows once terms are agreed.
A short, confidential scoping call and NDA; we structure the requirement and prepare materials, then run a competitive process across our 5,000+ investor and lender relationships, and negotiate to close — with a partner leading at every step.
Matchpoint Partners is based in the UAE and runs cross-border mandates across the UAE, KSA, India and the UK, with active deal activity in wider Europe, Singapore and the United States.
Matchpoint undertakes corporate finance, financing, M&A and fund-placement mandates from USD 5m upwards, subject to mandate fit, diligence, applicable regulation, capacity and a written engagement. The partner team has originated and led $2+ billion of transactions.
Use the enquiry form, email contact@matchpoint-partners.com, or call/WhatsApp +971 55 345 6487. Every mandate is led by a partner from the very first conversation.
Yes. Confidential information is handled under the engagement terms and any applicable non-disclosure agreement.
Related
More in Debt
Entering the GCC? Start with a market briefing
Book a partner-led briefing on security, enforcement and deal flow — and leave with a realistic deployment map for your mandate.
Lender onboarding
How do lenders and credit funds start working with a buy-side advisory team?
Start with a written deployment mandate covering decision authority, ticket range, instruments, sectors, geographies, target risk and return, security requirements, sponsor criteria, exclusions and timing. The adviser can then screen borrower opportunities and standardise information for credit review.
What information should a lender deployment mandate contain?
Include fund or balance-sheet mandate, available capital, ticket limits, permitted instruments, sector and geographic limits, target economics, security policy, covenant expectations, sponsor criteria, approval process and deployment timetable.
Pipeline
Screen borrowers and sponsors against agreed gates.
Underwriting
Standardise financial, security and downside information.
Execution
Coordinate questions, terms, diligence and closing readiness.
Capital markets ecosystem
Investment roles, structures and decision criteria
Explore the participants and transaction options relevant to this practice. Each entry sets out a discussion scope, decision checks, a paid engagement starting point and the specialist responsibilities to confirm.
Advisory
Debt AdvisersCME-295 · Advisory · Intermediary
- Ecosystem role
- Intermediary
- Related asset class
- Advisory services
- Instrument context
- Advisory mandate
Mandate context: capital raising, M&A, debt and special situations mandates. The structure and rights are established by the specific transaction documents.
Decision focus: A defined scope and a reviewable decision record.
- Client authority, objective and required deliverables
- Named delivery team, evidence and scope exclusions
- Fees, conflicts, reliance and specialist handovers
Scope to discuss: Adviser selection, diligence coordination and transaction workstream management.
Paid engagement entry point: adviser-scope and diligence-workplan diagnostic; followed by coordinated workstream delivery.
Illustrative GCC scenario: An illustrative UAE acquisition advisory scope can define the transaction lead, decision gates, diligence providers, deliverable ownership and written fee terms. This is a hypothetical decision example.
What should be agreed before a mandate involving Debt Advisers?
Define the investment or transaction objective, the authorised decision-maker, the evidence available, the requested deliverables and the next approval. Use the decision checks above to identify gaps; agree the workplan, delivery responsibilities and fee terms in writing.
Delivery and specialist boundary: Agree the provider, qualifications, independence, permission, reliance rights and scope before appointment. Matchpoint's scope can cover adviser selection and transaction coordination. Legal, tax, audit, engineering, insurance, custody, administration, ratings and other specialist conclusions require the appropriately qualified and appointed provider.
Discuss a paid scopeFurther reading on diligence, market frameworks and applicable requirements. These resources do not verify an individual mandate or Matchpoint permission.
Matchpoint decision framework
Private-credit lender diligence for sponsor-backed transactions
Editorial update: 2026-09-07
A lender-facing review should connect the borrower’s cash generation to the proposed debt structure and downside protections. Sponsor reputation and collateral descriptions need supporting evidence. Begin by identifying the borrowing entity, use of proceeds, repayment source and responsibilities of the borrower, sponsor and other stakeholders.
Reconcile debt capacity
Review historical cash conversion, working-capital seasonality, capital expenditure and existing debt service. Separate recurring earnings from adjustments and explain each material assumption. Test slower collections, lower margins and delayed refinancing. A debt-capacity view should show when cash is available, not simply quote an annual earnings multiple without a repayment bridge.
Examine structural dependencies
Map borrower entities, guarantees, security proposals, intercompany balances and creditor priorities. Treat enforceability and regulatory questions as specialist legal work. Identify conditions to funding, reporting requirements and covenant definitions. Security value, ability to enforce and time to recover are different questions and should not be collapsed into a single collateral number.
Turn diligence into a credit decision
Maintain an exception log linking each material finding to the proposed response: further evidence, revised terms, a condition to funding or a reason to decline. Assign an owner and due date. Prepare an investment-committee or credit memo that distinguishes verified evidence, management forecasts and lender assumptions, including the planned monitoring and escalation process.
Decision preparation checklist
- Cash-flow bridge and debt schedule
- Sponsor-support evidence
- Entity, guarantee and security map
- Downside and covenant assumptions
- Credit exceptions, conditions and monitoring
Practical questions
Does sponsor backing remove underwriting risk?
No. Examine the borrower, documented sponsor obligations and actual transaction structure. Sponsor association alone does not establish a funding commitment.
What should a lender diligence memo explain?
Repayment capacity, structure, evidence quality, downside, open exceptions, proposed conditions and post-funding monitoring responsibilities.
Related decision paths
Discuss your decision with Matchpoint
Start with a non-confidential brief covering the objective, jurisdictions, current stage, timing and open decisions. Any engagement is subject to fit, jurisdictional review, written scope and agreed fees. Please do not submit confidential third-party information through a public form.
Request a mandate discussionFounder credentials: Chennakeshav (CK) Adya
This paper is part of a continuing series on the structure of private and alternative markets. The views expressed are the author's own. The paper is for information only, describes market structure in general terms, and does not constitute investment, legal, tax or regulatory advice or a recommendation in respect of any security, vehicle or counterparty.
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