Debt Syndication Advisor in India for bank, NBFC and ECB funding.
I help business owners and finance heads raise funding from banks and NBFCs - working capital limits, term loans, project finance, refinancing and balance transfer, and ECB from overseas lenders. I am a Chartered Accountant and Managing Partner of DRSPV & Associates (Chartered Accountants, est. 2023), where debt syndication is one of the firm's practice areas. We work out which kind of debt fits the use of the money, prepare the proposal - CMA data, projections and security - and take it to the lenders that fit. Lenders decide sanction, amount and pricing; our job is a proposal they can approve.
The kinds of debt we work on.
Debt is not one product. Each kind fits one use of money, and the first job is matching the two. These are the facilities we work on:
Working capital limits: CC, OD and WCDL
Cash credit and overdraft are revolving limits. A WCDL is a fixed-tenor drawdown under the same sanction, typically for 30, 60, 90 or 180 days. What you can actually draw is your drawing power, worked out from the monthly stock and debtor statement, so we size the limit, and negotiate the drawing-power formula, around what the business can really use.
Term loans
For machinery, equipment, acquisitions and growth projects, repaid over years. A bank sizes a term loan backwards from repayment capacity, and the moratorium should match the time the asset needs to start earning, so we shape the loan around your projected cash accruals.
Term Loan vs Working Capital Loan: Match the Debt to the UseProject finance
For a plant, a hotel, a logistics park or a renewable energy project. The lender is lending against the future cash flows of a specific project, not against your existing balance sheet, so the proposal is built around the bankability study, the debt service reserve account, interest during construction and a tranche-wise drawdown plan.
Refinancing and balance transfer
Moving or restructuring debt you already have: shifting it to a cheaper lender once your credit has improved, carving capex out of an overdrawn cash credit, or restructuring covenants before you breach them. We read the existing sanctions first and weigh any move against prepayment charges.
ECB from overseas lenders
External commercial borrowing is a loan from a lender outside India, such as a foreign bank, a group company or a foreign shareholder, within RBI's rules on borrowing limits, minimum maturity and end use. It goes through an authorised dealer bank, and we compare the hedged cost with rupee debt before recommending it.
Credit rating support
A rating from an agency often supports pricing and renewal, and banks may ask for one. We run the readiness review, prepare the information pack and the management meeting, and support the surveillance that follows.
We also work on NCD private placement, bill discounting and invoice financing, bank guarantee and letter of credit limits, venture debt and revenue-based financing, and mezzanine and structured debt.
Which lender fits the need.
The right lender depends on what the money is for, the security you can offer and how much structure you need. This is the comparison we start from. It is deliberately qualitative: pricing and terms move with the market and with your credit profile, so we take them from the lenders themselves.
| Factor | Bank loans | NBFCs and private credit | ECB from abroad |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it usually funds | Working capital limits, term loans for assets and growth projects, and project finance | Structured debt such as privately placed NCDs, for larger, rated companies that need bullet or structured repayment a bank will not offer | Capex, acquisitions, working capital and other uses outside RBI's negative list |
| Repayment | Banks prefer amortising loans, with a moratorium that matches the time the asset needs to start earning | Investors in privately placed NCDs accept structures a bank will not: bullet or back-ended repayment, or interest paid at maturity | A minimum average maturity applies, generally 3 years |
| Security and conditions | Working capital limits are usually secured by hypothecation of stock and debtors, term loans by a charge on the asset financed, often with property as additional collateral; promoter guarantees are normal for private companies | Private credit investors often add promoter guarantees, share pledges and cash flow escrows | Agreed with the lender; end use must stay outside RBI's negative list |
| Cost | Floating-rate loans to micro, small and medium enterprises are linked to an external benchmark such as the repo rate, plus a spread; compare spreads and charges, not headline rates | Private credit usually costs more than bank debt for the same company | Since February 2026 most ECBs have no fixed cost ceiling, but the cost must match market conditions; add the hedging cost before comparing it with rupee debt |
| Flexibility after signing | Covenants should be negotiated at sanction, not at breach | Covenants are hard to amend once several holders are involved | An existing ECB can be refinanced in part or in full with a fresh ECB, if the minimum average maturity that applied to the original loan is still met |
| Reporting | Monthly stock and debtor statements, periodic stock audits and a yearly review of the sanction | Information rights and financial covenants, as set in the term sheet | Loan registration number and returns, filed through the authorised dealer bank |
Lenders decide sanction, amount and pricing, and we cannot promise any of the three. NBFCs and private credit funds are among the buyers of NCDs, and each has its own mandate on rating, tenor and security. This is a starting point for the conversation, not advice for your company: we confirm the current rules and lender terms before you sign anything.
Debt syndication, step by step.
Eight stages from the first conversation to disbursement. We prepare the proposal and manage the conversation with lenders; the lenders appraise it, sanction it and disburse.
- 01
Diagnosis: what the money is for
We start with one page: what the money is for, how much, over what period and where repayment will come from. That page decides whether you need a term loan, a working capital limit or both.
- 02
Review of existing facilities
We read your current sanction letters: limits, margins, the drawing-power formula, covenants, security and renewal dates. We flag accounts running above drawing power and capex funded out of a working capital limit, so they can be put right while the account is still regular.
- 03
CMA data and projections
We prepare the CMA report in the bank's format: past audited years, the current-year estimate and projections for the period of the loan, across the six forms from existing limits to the fund flow statement. Every line is linked, the balance sheet balances without a plug, and the numbers reconcile with your stock statements and GST returns. We ask each bank for its template first.
- 04
Stress test and structure
We run the test most banks run - lower sales, lower margins, higher interest - and check that debt service coverage holds. If the loan works only in the base case, we change the tenor, the moratorium or the amount before the bank asks. Then we settle the promoter contribution and the security package.
- 05
Credit rating, where it helps
Banks often ask for a rating at renewal, and many link the loan spread to it. Where a rating will help, we run the readiness review first, then prepare the information pack and the management meeting for the agency.
- 06
Approaching lenders
We take the same proposal to the lenders that fit, banks, NBFCs or both, and compare the offers on spread, charges, covenants and security rather than the headline rate. We do not accept the first sanction without benchmarking it against other offers. For larger limits the structure may be a consortium, where several banks share the exposure under a lead bank.
- 07
Sanction terms and security creation
Before you accept, we read the sanction letter line by line: prepayment charges, financial covenants such as DSCR and leverage, reserve requirements, rating triggers and the timeline for creating security. Negotiate these at sanction, not at breach.
- 08
Disbursement and monitoring
Project finance is released in tranches against verified progress, each with a lender's engineer certificate. After that come monthly stock and debtor statements, stock audits and the annual review of the sanction. For an ECB, add the loan registration number and the returns filed through the authorised dealer bank.
What a lender checks before it says yes.
A lender asks one question: can this business repay? It answers from a short list of tests, and we build the proposal around them.
Debt service coverage
Banks size a term loan backwards from repayment capacity. The test is DSCR: cash accruals against the interest and principal due in the year. Many lenders want an average of roughly 1.25 to 1.5, and they look just as hard at the weakest year.
CMA Data Report and DSCR: How Banks Read Your ProjectionsProjections that tie
A CMA gets sent back when sales growth runs far above the past trend with no order book, capacity or new market to explain it, when margins improve every year while input costs and competition are ignored, or when the projections do not tie back to the last audited balance sheet. We link every line, add a short note of assumptions and attach the evidence.
Promoter contribution and security
Expect a real promoter contribution, often around 25 percent of project cost or more depending on the sector, and security cover commonly 1.25 to 1.5 times the loan. Personal guarantees from promoters are normal for private companies.
Working capital discipline
Under RBI's norms a cash credit that stays above its drawing power or limit becomes SMA-1 after 30 days, SMA-2 after 60 days and a non-performing asset after 90 days. The most common error in a growing business is buying machinery out of the cash credit limit, so we keep capex and working capital on separate lines.
Repayment record and credit reports
Banks ask for your sanction letters, repayment track record and commercial credit report. We pull the company's and the promoters' reports early, so any error is corrected through the bureau and the lender before the proposal goes out.
A finance function that keeps the numbers tied
A banker who sees turnover, stock and debtors agree across the CMA, the stock statements and the GST returns trusts the projections that follow. A finance team that keeps them in step all year makes every renewal easier, and that is the monthly close, MIS and cash-flow work our virtual CFO service covers.
Virtual CFO Services in IndiaThe credit rating behind the loan.
A rating is an independent agency's opinion on how likely a company is to pay its debt in full and on time. For a bank loan the law does not require one, but banks often ask for it at renewal. For listed NCDs and commercial paper it is mandatory. We prepare you in four parts:
Readiness review
Before you sign a mandate, we go through the numbers, the conduct of your accounts, the credit reports and the documents the agency will ask for, so weak points are fixed first.
Credit Rating Readiness Checklist for Indian CompaniesInformation pack and management meeting
The pack covers audited accounts, sanction letters and banking details, projections and business information. We prepare it, and we prepare you for the management meeting, the usual visit to your plant or office and the agency's calls with your bankers.
Bank loan rating or NCD rating
For most SMEs and mid-sized companies the bank loan rating comes first, because banks are the main lenders and the rating supports pricing and renewal. An NCD rating makes sense once you plan to raise from the market.
Bank Loan Rating vs NCD Rating: What Is the DifferenceSurveillance and upgrade
Once a rating is published, the agency reviews it at least once a year and collects a monthly no default statement. When an upgrade comes, we ask the bank for a rate reset at renewal and check the sanction letters for rating triggers.
How to Improve Your Company's Credit Rating in IndiaThe rating is the agency's independent decision, not ours and not the lender's. Once the information pack is complete, the process usually takes a few weeks, and incomplete information is the most common cause of delay.
Debt syndication questions.
What is debt syndication?
Debt syndication is arranging debt for a business from one or more lenders and managing the process from the proposal to the disbursement. The adviser matches the kind of debt to the use of the money, prepares the proposal and takes it to the lenders that fit. For larger limits, several banks can lend together as a consortium under a lead bank. The lenders appraise the proposal and decide.
Can you guarantee a loan sanction or a lower interest rate?
No. Lenders decide sanction, amount and pricing, and nobody can promise any of the three. What we control is a complete, consistent proposal - CMA data that ties to your accounts, projections that hold up under a stress test and a clear security package - and a fair comparison of the offers that come back.
What is a CMA report and who prepares it?
CMA stands for Credit Monitoring Arrangement, a scheme RBI once used to monitor large bank credit, whose format banks kept. It puts your past audited years, the current-year estimate and projections for the loan period into six forms that the credit officer reads. The borrower prepares it, usually with a chartered accountant, and many banks use their own templates, so ask for the format before you start.
What is the difference between CC, OD and WCDL?
All three fund working capital. A cash credit is a revolving limit secured against stock and debtors, and what you can draw is capped by drawing power, which changes with your monthly stock and debtor statements. An overdraft is a flexible revolving limit with less paperwork, usually on a smaller scale. A WCDL is a fixed-tenor drawdown under the same sanction, typically 30, 60, 90 or 180 days, priced lower than the cash credit and repaid at maturity before it can be drawn again.
What DSCR do banks want for a term loan?
DSCR is profit after tax plus depreciation plus term loan interest, divided by that interest plus the principal due in the year. Many lenders want an average of roughly 1.25 to 1.5, and they look just as hard at the weakest year of the loan. Most banks also stress your projections with lower sales, lower margins or higher interest, so we run the same test first and show it in the report.
Is a credit rating compulsory for a bank loan?
No. The law does not require a borrower to be rated for a bank loan, but banks often ask for a rating because it affects the capital they must hold against the loan, and many link the loan spread to it. For listed NCDs and commercial paper a rating is mandatory. Once the information pack is complete, a rating usually takes a few weeks.
What is ECB, and can my company borrow from abroad?
External commercial borrowing is a loan raised from a lender outside India, such as a foreign bank, a group company or a foreign shareholder. Most Indian companies can borrow under the automatic route through an authorised dealer bank. Under the RBI rules in force since February 2026, the limit is the higher of USD 1 billion of outstanding ECB or total borrowing of 300 percent of net worth, the minimum average maturity is generally 3 years, and the cost must match market conditions. We check the current rules first and compare the hedged cost with rupee debt before recommending an ECB.
Can you move my existing loan to another lender?
Yes, that is a refinancing or balance transfer, and we prepare the proposal for it. We read your current sanctions first, then compare what other lenders would offer on spread, charges and covenants. A move makes most sense when your credit has improved since the loan was taken, for example after a rating upgrade, and it has to be weighed against prepayment charges on the old loan. Whether a lender takes the loan over, and on what terms, is its decision.
- Debt Syndication for Indian Businesses: A Practical Guide
- Working Capital Loans: CC vs OD vs WCDL
- Project Finance for Indian Capex: Bankability, DSRA & Drawdown
- External Commercial Borrowing (ECB): RBI's Automatic Route Decoded
- CMA Data Report and DSCR: How Banks Read Your Projections
- SME Credit Rating: How CRISIL, ICRA, CARE and India Ratings Work
- Virtual CFO Services in India
- Vraj Changani - CA, Startup Advisor & IPO Consultant
Planning a loan? Start with what the money is for.
Send a short note on the purpose and amount of the funding, your existing limits and your recent audited financial statements. We will come back with the kind of debt that fits, what the proposal needs and the sequence to lenders.
WhatsApp +91 88664 48967 - CA Vraj Changani, DRSPV & Associates, Mumbai.