Bank of America Merrill Lynch has an opportunity for a Sr. Quantitative Financial Analyst within our Global Risk Analytics (GRA) function. GRA is a sub-line of business within Global Risk Management (GRM). GRA is responsible for developing a consistent and coherent set of models and analytical tools for effective risk and capital measurement, management and reporting across Bank of America. GRA partners with the Lines of Business and Enterprise functions to ensure that its models and analytics address both internal and regulatory requirements, such as quarterly Enterprise Stress Testing (EST), the annual Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR), and the Current Expected Credit Losses (CECL) accounting standard. GRA models follow an iterative and ongoing development life cycle, as the bank responds to the changing nature of portfolios, economic conditions and emerging risks. In addition to model development, GRA conducts model implementation, data management, model execution and analysis, forecast administration, and model performance monitoring. GRA drives innovation, process improvement and automation across all of these activities.

Overview of Consumer Loss Forecasting

The Consumer Loss Forecasting (CLF) team is part of Global Risk Analytics (GRA). CLF provides analytical insights, enabling improved Credit Risk management. The primary delivery vehicle is through consumer loss forecasts, for both held-for-investment and sold loan portfolios, as well as actual loan net credit losses and new Troubled Debt Restructurings (TDRs). This collective output is utilized for allowance setting, financial planning, Comprehensive Capital Analysis & Review (CCAR) submission, and other business decision-making. In order to deliver these insights, the team:

• Conducts research and analysis to improve understanding and assessment of loan portfolios, models used and forecast results
• Develops, maintains, and executes select models, quantitative methods, assumptions utilized in loss forecasting; and associated tools and reports
• Manages related infrastructure and processes that enable forecasts and analytics together with Operations
• Partners with Consumer lines of business, and front line Risk, Allowance, and Finance teams to ensure consistency and appropriateness of the team’s various processes

This role plays a critical part in the Bank’s stress testing, financial planning, and risk management activities. It requires a strong understanding of economics, credit, markets and finance with the ability to apply those concepts to data analysis, combining business acumen with analytical skills to asses risk and drive well-informed management decisions.

The Sr. Quantitative Financial Analyst interacts with a wide variety of stakeholders including risk managers, model developers, operations, technology, finance, and capital. The Analyst will identify, lead, and organize strategic change efforts across the forecasting team including new model deployment and analytical capability development.

New model deployment includes:

• Comprehensive use-case planning
• Tactical build-out of required management information which aide in understanding model performance
• Creation of thorough testing plans
• Identifying requirements needed from key stakeholders

Analytical capability development includes:

• Identifying needs and requirements from the CLF team which improve the group’s ability to generate insights and understanding of portfolio risk, model accuracy, and forecast reasonability
• Identifying new topics for analytical inquiry
• Organizing across teams to ensure need fulfillment
There is also the opportunity to directly conduct analysis and develop new insights. Each of these responsibilities require strong written and verbal communication skills, influencing resources from other teams, and the ability to identify core implications and connections within complex issues.

Required and Desired Candidate Qualifications

Required Skills

• Experience in Credit, Market, or Economic Analysis with a demonstrated track record of generating and communicating insights which improve performance and understanding
• Strong business and financial acumen
• Attention to detail coupled with ability to simplify the complex
• Experience in data science and analysis, with excellent analytical skills
• Strategic thinker that can understand complex business challenges and potential solutions
• Demonstrated ability to organize and work collaboratively across multiple teams and functions
• Strong written/verbal communication skills, with the ability to adjust to both technical and executive audiences
• Flexibility to work both independently with little supervision and in a complex team environment
• Proficiency with Tableau, MS Excel, and PowerPoint
• Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience

Desired Skills

• Consumer behavior analytics or risk modeling in a financial institution
• Programing skills (Python, R, SQL, LaTeX)
• Experience meeting with internal / external examiners and responding to questions and required actions
• Experience with DFAST / CCAR

About the Company:
Bank of America Merrill Lynch