FOCUSGROWTH ASSET MANAGEMENT
Associate — Investment Team
New York, NY (Remote Flexibility) | Full-Time
Note: This is a direct hire. We are not engaging external recruiters or agencies for this role.
About FocusGrowth
FocusGrowth Asset Management is an institutional investment firm dedicated to the U.S. cannabis industry, with over $1.1 billion deployed since 2020 predominantly across senior secured credit. Our investment approach combines private equity–style engagement — hands-on portfolio monitoring, active risk management, and ongoing strategic dialogue with management teams — with institutional-grade underwriting. While senior secured debt is our primary focus, we invest opportunistically across the capital structure to capture the best risk-adjusted return opportunities as they arise.
Our investment team operates with a focused, high-conviction mandate. Every team member is involved across the full transaction lifecycle, from origination and structuring through execution and portfolio monitoring.
The U.S. cannabis sector remains one of the most capital-constrained industries of scale, creating a persistent opportunity to originate investments at what we believe are attractive returns with strong structural protections. Our platform is built to capitalize on this inefficiency through disciplined underwriting and deep industry expertise.
The Opportunity
We are hiring an Associate to join the Investment Team. This is a principal investing role on a lean deal team where you will take meaningful responsibility for underwriting, structuring, and executing investments from day one — primarily senior secured credit, with exposure to opportunistic positions across the capital structure including public equity, convertible instruments, and secondary market purchases. You will work directly alongside senior decision-makers and the firm’s investment committee.
What You’ll Do
Underwriting & Execution
- Conduct bottoms-up credit analysis, including three-statement financial modeling, cash flow forecasting, and downside scenario analysis
- Evaluate new investment opportunities end-to-end: initial screening, due diligence, financial modeling, loan agreement structuring, and investment memo preparation
- Support deal structuring and term sheet negotiation for senior secured term loans, including pricing, covenant packages, and collateral frameworks
Portfolio Management
- Monitor a portfolio of active credit investments: track monthly borrower financials, test covenant compliance, and flag emerging risks
- Build and maintain borrower monitoring dashboards and portfolio-level reporting for internal and investor use
- Participate in borrower calls, site visits, and management meetings; contribute to ongoing strategic dialogue with portfolio company leadership
Research & Market Intelligence
- Research state-level cannabis regulatory developments, legislative changes, and licensing dynamics to inform underwriting assumptions and portfolio positioning
- Track competitive landscape: M&A activity, capital markets developments, and peer lender behavior to support deal sourcing and market timing
Who You Are
- 1–3 years of experience in investment banking, private equity, equity research, leveraged finance, direct lending, restructuring, or credit analysis at a bank, fund, or advisory firm
- Strong financial modeling skills: you can build a three-statement forecast model, construct a debt waterfall, and stress-test a capital structure from a blank workbook
- Clear, concise communicator who can distill complex analysis for different audiences: internal team, outside counsel, co-lenders, and borrower management
- Self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment with minimal structure; you identify what needs to be done and do it
- Intellectually curious and willing to develop expertise in an emerging, rapidly evolving sector
- Knowledge of the cannabis industry is a plus but not required
Why FocusGrowth
- Principal Investing from Day One. This is not a support role. You will evaluate, structure, and execute investments with direct exposure to senior decision-makers across every transaction
- Institutional Platform, Entrepreneurial Mandate. We combine the infrastructure, capital base, and rigor of an institutional fund with the speed, ownership culture, and direct access to decision-makers that define the best emerging platforms
- Full-Spectrum Skill Development. Unlike larger platforms where roles are siloed, you will develop skills across financial modeling, legal document negotiation, portfolio management, and borrower engagement
FocusGrowth is not partnering with recruiting agencies for this search. Unsolicited outreach will not be considered.
