Senior Associate / Vice President (Financial Sponsor Coverage Group)

Business Unit: Financial Sponsor Coverage Group

Industry: No Industry

Overview

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) is a leading global investment bank recognized for delivering independent strategic and financial advice to corporations, financial sponsors, and governments. With uniquely deep industry expertise, broad international reach, and a partnership approach rooted in trust, the firm provides innovative, integrated solutions across mergers and acquisitions, capital solutions, financial restructuring, and financial and valuation advisory. Our unmatched transaction volumes provide differentiated, data-driven perspectives that help our clients achieve their most critical goals. To learn more about Houlihan Lokey, please visit HL.com.

Financial Sponsor Coverage Group

Houlihan Lokey’s Financial Sponsor Coverage Group (FSCG) is made up of more than 35 professionals, spread across the globe. In Europe, FSCG operates across regions, with currently 7 Managing Directors and 3 Directors. The Group manages approximately 1,900 relationships, mostly private equity firms, infrastructure funds, credit funds, family offices, and sovereign wealth funds.

Following the recent acquisitions of a controlling stake in Audere Partners in France, Europe continues to be a central point of HL’s committed growth strategy. With the strength of our deal teams and sector teams, the Financial Sponsor Coverage Group is looking to expand accordingly to enable us to deepen our coverage and expertise across strategic locations in the European market. In 2025, Houlihan Lokey was named ‘European Private Equity Financial Advisor of the Year’ at the Mergermarket M&A Awards. As such, we are pleased to continue hiring also for FSCG, and there has never been a more exciting time to join this team.

The Opportunity

We are seeking an experienced Associate or Vice President to be a part of our Financial Sponsor Coverage effort in Frankfurt. This individual will play a vital role in further developing our relationships with DACH and European private equity funds in close partnership with the local bankers, acting as a key point of contact and orchestrating the full range of Houlihan Lokey's services.

The successful candidate will be responsible for supporting, developing and maintaining a strong network of relationships within the private equity community in DACH. They will support our Managing Directors in identifying and generating transaction opportunities, leveraging the deep expertise of our industry and product teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Support origination efforts across the Benelux & Nordic regions, and internationally
• Develop dialogues with key private equity funds in the DACH market, establishing trusted relationships with investment teams across all levels
• Act as a strategic advisor to sponsor clients on complex M&A, financing, capital structure, and other topics
• Support European MDs to generate a flow of relevant and customized investment ideas for sponsor clients, drawing on the bank's sector expertise
• Collaborate closely with Houlihan Lokey's product (i.e. Capital Solutions such as debt financing, primary capital raisings etc.) and sector bankers across Europe to ensure the delivery of an integrated, high-quality service
• Embody and promote a culture of collaboration, high performance, and integrity

Experience and Qualifications

• Strong background in Corporate Finance, primarily gained in Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) or Leveraged Finance
• 4-7 years of experience, operating as an Associate or Vice President currently at an investment bank, a leading M&A boutique, or within a financing team
• A structured and rigorous approach to origination and business development
• Strong work ethic, organizational skills and ability to multitask
• Ability to work independently in a fast-paced environment
• Ability to grow our business and act entrepreneurially
• Strong analytical abilities
• Maturity and presence to interact effectively with private equity funds and HL stakeholders
• A high-impact, low-ego personality with a natural talent for collaboration
• Ability to integrate smoothly into Houlihan Lokey's culture, characterized by collaboration, entrepreneurship, and excellence
• Fluency in German and English language

We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.