Rita Ebeh

Senior Credit Risk & Operations Specialist with 9+ years building and scaling SME and consumer lending operations across fintech and Tier-1 banking. Delivered <2% NPL on $33.6M multi-country portfolio while maintaining 99.7% recovery rate through automated underwriting, fraud prevention, and collections optimization. Expert in credit policy design, CBN regulatory compliance, portfolio monitoring, and driving profitability through risk-based decisioning.

Proven ability to build credit systems from scratch, reduce bad debt by 73%, and lead high-performing teams in fast-paced environments.

Head of Operations - SAPPHIRE VIRTUAL NETWORKS LIMITED

(2026-01)

Accountable for all Credit Risk, Underwriting, LMS governance, Collections, Recovery, Portfolio Controls, Customer Experience and Operations across the organisation.

• Designed credit scoring algorithm for Device Financing v3.0 through multi-level UAT and stress testing with engineering, risk, and audit teams — delivering a fraud-resistant model that reduced credit risk at launch.
• Drove collections efficiency from 80% to 89% and improved recovery by 24% by redesigning collections strategies, automating recovery systems, and embedding repayment accountability across operations teams.
• Built and enforced credit underwriting frameworks, LMS governance, and organisation-wide credit policies and SOPs, achieving audit-ready compliance standards.
• Relaunched Device Protection as a dual-product suite - Device Protection Classic and Device Protection (SIM-Activated) in partnership with all 3 major communication partners increasing sales by x7
• Oversaw and engineered the relaunch of trading partnership with Samsung and Distributors enabling ecosystem device access and optimising inventory risk exposure on discontinued devices.

Head, Credit Risk & Receivables Management - VENDEASE AFRICA

(2024-01 - 2026-01)

Led credit risk function and managed $33.6M receivables portfolio across Nigeria and Ghana, driving policy design, portfolio monitoring, collections strategy, and team leadership for B2B trade credit operations.

• Built and scaled credit operations team of 10+ across Nigeria and Ghana, implementing performance KPIs that increased collections efficiency from 75% to 96% within 6 months
• Achieved 99.7% portfolio recovery rate and maintained <2% NPL across $33.6M multi-country receivables portfolio through automated payment reminders, early intervention protocols, and legal escalation for high-risk accounts
• Reduced overdue accounts (>90 days) by 45% and decreased debtor days (DSO) from 45 to 16 days, unlocking ₦340M ($800K) in working capital to fund business expansion
• Designed dynamic credit limit algorithm based on repayment behavior, transaction velocity, and business growth patterns, increasing BNPL adoption from 12% to 47% of eligible customers (2,800+ businesses)
• Developed early warning indicators and exposure analysis framework that enabled proactive intervention on 200+ high-risk accounts before delinquency, preventing ₦185M in potential losses
• Deployed executive MIS dashboards tracking aging buckets, NPL trends, exposure by customer segment, collections pipeline performance, and portfolio health metrics with real-time reporting
• Built predictive models for customer segmentation, default probability scoring, and collections prioritization using SQL and Power BI, improving recovery prioritization accuracy by 38%
• Defined product metrics framework tracking loan uptake, approval ratios, delinquency rates by segment, and collections efficiency, using insights to guide credit policy adjustments and product roadmap

Finance Business Partner Tech & Product - VENDEASE AFRICA

(2023-03 - 2023-12)

Owned product development and launch of Vendease's first BNPL and credit system, defining underwriting criteria, repayment logic, default triggers, and performance metrics in collaboration with engineering, design, and operations teams.

• Led end-to-end product development of BNPL credit system from discovery to deployment, defining 15+ features including automated credit decisioning, flexible repayment terms (10/14/30 days), grace period management, late fee logic, and collections workflows
• Increased BNPL adoption from 12% to 47% of eligible customers within 6 months through data-driven iteration, A/B testing of credit offers, and UX optimization informed by funnel analysis
• Reduced customer drop-off rates by 35% through product enhancements based on user behavior data and usability testing across 12 sprint cycles
• Defined user stories, acceptance criteria, and technical requirements for automated credit decisioning engine, partnering with engineering through agile sprints to deliver 4 major releases on schedule
• Created financial performance dashboards tracking receivables aging, revenue realization, and liquidity metrics for executive and cross-functional visibility

Credit Risk Associate - VENDEASE AFRICA

(2021-11 - 2023-02)

Developed credit policies and managed B2B trade credit portfolio, achieving 93% approval rate with <4% default rate across $11.2M commercial lending book.

• Designed Vendease's first comprehensive credit risk policy framework for B2B trade credit, defining lending criteria, approval limits, risk segmentation, default triggers, and repayment logic that achieved 93% approval rate with <4% default rate
• Assessed creditworthiness of 3,000+ business customers and implemented tiered credit limits based on financial health, payment history, and business profile, reducing overdue accounts by 45%
• Reduced fraudulent credit applications by 30% through enhanced KYC verification, document validation, and behavioral analysis, preventing ₦4.7B ($11.2M+) in potential losses
• Improved collections efficiency from 75% to 93% over 14 months through structured follow-up processes, segmented recovery strategies, and daily performance tracking of collections team
• Monitored portfolio health through weekly aging reports, early warning indicators, and exposure analysis, enabling proactive intervention on 150+ high-risk accounts before default
• Reduced bad debt ratio from 11.8% to 3% (73% reduction) through robust risk profiling, real-time monitoring, and policy enforcement across 3,000+ customer accounts

Credit Risk Analyst - AIROPAY LIMITED - Nigeria

(2020-08 - 2021-09)

Designed credit risk policy and built in-house credit scoring system for consumer and commercial lending products, ensuring CBN regulatory compliance.

• Built Airopay's first credit risk policy framework for consumer and commercial lending products (school loans, salary loans, asset finance, nano loans) aligned with CBN regulatory guidelines
• Led transition from third-party credit scoring platform to in-house solution, defining requirements, validating models, and collaborating with engineering team to deploy automated rule-based approval system
• Designed credit decisioning models and automated approval workflows for multiple lending products, improving approval rates by 25% while maintaining asset quality through alternative data integration
• Monitored product performance through weekly cohort analysis and iteratively improved underwriting rules based on repayment trends, reducing default rates by 18% across product portfolio
• Implemented alternative data analytics (mobile usage, transaction history, digital footprint) for credit assessment, expanding addressable customer base by 35% without increasing risk exposure

Credit Authorizer – Loan Factory - Treasury Operations - UNION BANK OF NIGERIA - Nigeria

(2018-11 - 2021-11)

Authorized high-volume credit transactions using Oracle Flexcube core banking platform, maintaining approval accuracy and reducing fraud losses through enhanced risk-based controls.

• Authorized 2,900+ monthly credit transactions across retail and commercial portfolios with 98% approval accuracy while reducing authorization cycle time by 35% through process optimization
• Reduced fraudulent loan disbursements by 42% (prevented ₦210M+ in potential losses) through enhanced risk-based authorization controls, KYC verification, and documentation compliance checks using Oracle Flexcube
• Conducted stress testing and scenario analysis for credit portfolios under various economic conditions, supporting treasury's capital allocation decisions and risk appetite calibration