“Credit is technical.” “Credit is all about ratios, formats, and policy.” “Credit is a desk job. I can’t do it. It’s really tough.”
That’s what I believed when I started.
But after 10+ years in credit and after hundreds of MSME appraisals, bank renewals, audit queries, sleepless month-ends, rejections, approvals, frauds, restructures, and recoveries; I’ve come to learn that credit is not just finance. It’s human.
It’s a daily practice of logic, trust, judgment and indefinite learning. And you don’t learn just by mugging up line by line or book its file by file, each file is different from other, every borrower and there study is completely different from other.
Here Are the 10 Things I Know Now The Ones That Changed Me as a Credit Officer:
1. Ratios can lie. Conduct doesn’t.
A perfect DSCR, TNW, and Current Ratio may still hide weak conduct. Late payments, cheque returns, and unclear fund flow speak louder than any CMA sheet.
Sanction comfort = repayment history + cash discipline.
2.Turnover tells you ambition. Banking shows you reality.
Projections are a dream. Bank credits are the truth.
Always trace limits from bank conduct, not just Excel sheets.
3. The footnotes are where the truth lives.
One line in the notes to accounts can overturn the whole file.
- Contingent liabilities
- Unsecured advances to group firms
- Related party transactions They often hide in the fine print.
Real credit work begins where most people stop reading.
4. You don’t fund businesses. You fund people.
I’ve seen proposals with poor numbers succeed because of solid promoters. And I’ve seen strong balance sheets collapse due to reckless decision-makers.
Intent > Numbers > Collateral.
5. A kind NO builds more trust than a blind YES.
There were times I rejected files and got a thank-you. Why? Because when we explain the why, clients understand we’re protecting them too.
Saying NO with reason is not rejection — it’s responsible advising.
6. Every cheque return has a story. Ask. Don’t assume.
Cheque bounces are not always fraud. Sometimes it’s delayed payments, sometimes it’s undisciplined planning. And sometimes… it’s the start of trouble.
Learn to listen before you score.
7. GST is the real P&L.
Books can be delayed. Audits can be polished. But GSTR-3B doesn’t lie.
Cross-matching GST to turnover is one of the smartest habits I’ve picked up.
8. Fund flow > Fund size.
Even a ₹5 Cr sanction can go wrong if usage is wrong. I’ve seen big-ticket term loans get misused within 30 days. And small ₹10 lakh limits used so wisely that it led to ₹10 Cr turnover in 3 years.
Focus on where the money goes, not how much is asked.
9. Structure is strategy.
Limit size is not enough. How it’s built is CC vs WCDL vs PCFC vs BG, How it’s secured iss asset match, repayment logic How it’s linked is to project stages, cycles, orders
That’s the difference between a loan and a solution.
10. Good credit officers think in numbers. Great ones think in outcomes.
Sanctioning is easy. But asking:
- What happens after?
- Can they repay?
- Will they grow with this structure?
That’s what separates good from great.
My final Thought
This series was not just content. It was my real-world journal. Every topic, every caption, every tip came from lived experience.
Credit is not just about giving money. It’s about giving it wisely — so that it comes back with success, not regret.
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