A live underwriting desk for a ~$40M senior-secured direct loan. Type the deal, watch every coverage ratio, covenant cushion, and downside scenario resolve into one verdict — the way a committee actually reads it.
Reference covenants are typical mid-market direct-lending levels: max total leverage 5.50x, min FCCR 1.10x, min DSCR 1.20x. Cushion is the distance from where you are to where the covenant trips. Negative cushion means you are already through the covenant at close.
No covenant trips through −30% EBITDA.
Calculating…
A stylized first-pass underwriting screen. Leverage and coverage are computed on the figures above; the covenant set is generic mid-market direct lending, not the terms of any specific facility. Mandatory amortization is taken as a percent of total debt per year. DSCR uses (EBITDA − maintenance capex − cash taxes) over (cash interest + mandatory amortization); FCCR uses the same numerator over (cash interest + amortization + annual rent/leases), so it reads stricter than DSCR whenever rent is present. This is decision support, not credit advice or a commitment to lend. Validate against the actual credit agreement, the QoE, and your firm's underwriting policy before committee.