8 practitioner guides by Julian R. Sterling, best read first at the top. Each one is built on a single worked case, and every figure it prints is a live formula in a free workbook.
The quickest way into credit, private credit and distressed debt is The Distressed Debt Investor, the most read title in this list. The others go deeper into one job or one asset each. Every book below has a free companion page with the workbooks, so the arithmetic can be checked before the book is bought.
A Practical Career and Implementation Guide to Special Situations, Restructuring, and Investing Across the Capital Structure
A recovery model driven off visible assumptions, with a waterfall that moves when enterprise value moves. Special situations, restructuring, the fulcrum.
Worked example: Does the fulcrum security move when enterprise value changes?
Worked example: What an 80-cent recovery is actually worth
Worked example: What enterprise value does a distressed bond price imply?
Worked example: What is a Chapter 11 rights offering worth to a creditor?
Worked example: How do you calculate recoveries in a liquidation analysis?
Worked example: How much does an uptier transaction cost the excluded lenders?
Worked example: How is a bondholder's claim calculated in Chapter 11?
Worked example: How does a DIP loan with a roll-up change creditor recoveries?
Worked example: How is equity split between creditors in a debt-for-equity swap?
Worked example: Should a bondholder accept a distressed exchange offer?
Worked example: How much post-petition interest does an oversecured creditor get?
Worked example: How is an undersecured creditor's deficiency claim calculated?
Worked example: What recovery does a distressed bond need to break even?
Worked example: How much debt do you need to block a Chapter 11 plan?
Worked example: How does structural subordination change a holdco bond's recovery?
Worked example: How do you calculate implied default probability from a bond price?
Worked example: What is a Chapter 11 cramdown note worth to a secured creditor?
Worked example: How much do Chapter 11 professional fees cut creditor recoveries?
Worked example: What all-in yield does a DIP loan actually earn?
Worked example: How do you calculate the minimum overbid on a stalking horse bid?
The erosion is 47.7 per cent, not the 28.7 the headline implies — 1.20 points of net return, fifteen per cent of everything the strategy earns.
Worked example: How much room a 1.15x downside actually leaves
Worked example: How do you calculate a fixed charge coverage ratio on a direct loan?
Worked example: How many basis points of spread is one point of OID worth?
Worked example: How do you calculate the last-out spread in a unitranche?
Worked example: How do you calculate PIK interest on a private credit loan?
Worked example: How much does leverage add to a private credit fund's return?
Worked example: How much does call protection add to a private credit loan's yield?
Worked example: How do you calculate loan-to-value on a direct lending deal?
Worked example: How much is a SOFR floor worth on a private credit loan?
Worked example: Unitranche vs first lien and second lien: which costs more?
Worked example: How is a ticking fee calculated on a delayed draw term loan?
Worked example: How do you calculate the loss rate on a private credit portfolio?
Worked example: How do you calculate a BDC's asset coverage ratio?
Worked example: How do you calculate the illiquidity premium in private credit?
Worked example: How much can a lender lend against ARR in a recurring revenue loan?
Worked example: How many loans does a private credit fund need to be diversified?
Worked example: How much is a maintenance covenant worth vs covenant-lite?
Worked example: How high can SOFR go before a direct loan's interest cover breaks?
Worked example: How much do rate cuts reduce a direct lending fund's return?
Worked example: How do you calculate WARF for a private credit loan portfolio?
A Practitioner's Guide to One Borrower, Four EBITDAs, and the Number That Decides Whether the Loan Is Repaid
The four workbooks behind Credit Analysis: the add-back bridge with a switch on every line, both covenants and which one binds, the downside carried through to cash and the recovery, and expected loss against the margin.
Worked example: What is an EBITDA add-back bridge actually worth in leverage turns?
Worked example: How does operating leverage amplify a lender's downside case?
Worked example: What probability of default does a loan margin break even at?
Worked example: How do you calculate a company's debt capacity from EBITDA?
Worked example: How do you calculate net debt to EBITDA for a credit analysis?
Worked example: How do you calculate expected loss on a loan: PD x LGD x EAD?
Worked example: How do you calculate the interest coverage ratio: EBIT or EBITDA?
Worked example: How do you calculate FFO to debt in a credit analysis?
Worked example: How do you calculate the Altman Z-score, and which version applies?
Worked example: How many years does it take to repay debt from free cash flow?
Worked example: How do you calculate pro forma leverage after an acquisition?
Worked example: How do you estimate maintenance capex in a credit analysis?
Worked example: How should a lender price a covenant amendment?
Worked example: How do you calculate the gearing ratio for a credit analysis?
Worked example: How do you calculate RAROC on a corporate loan?
Worked example: How do you calculate distance to default with the Merton model?
Worked example: How do you estimate a credit rating from financial ratios?
Worked example: How do you size a revolver for seasonal working capital?
Worked example: How do you calculate lease-adjusted leverage: EBITDAR or IFRS 16?
Worked example: How do you calculate the Beneish M-score for a borrower?
Five free Excel workbooks: twenty-eight quarters of a unitranche, the add-back that is the only thing passing the test, and a cure that costs 5.5 times the other.
Worked example: What is a 50 basis point MFN actually worth to an existing lender?
Worked example: How much equity does a covenant cure need: EBITDA or debt?
Worked example: How do you calculate an excess cash flow sweep?
Worked example: How do you calculate covenant headroom on a leverage covenant?
Worked example: How does a margin ratchet work in a leveraged loan?
Worked example: How do you calculate incremental facility capacity?
Worked example: How does a springing covenant work on a revolving credit facility?
Worked example: How does a grower basket work in a credit agreement?
Worked example: How is a commitment fee calculated on a revolving credit facility?
Worked example: How do you calculate builder basket capacity in a credit agreement?
Worked example: How does a cap on EBITDA add-backs work in a credit agreement?
Worked example: How does an amend and extend work when some lenders say no?
Worked example: How are break costs calculated on a loan prepayment?
Worked example: How does a cash netting cap work in a net leverage covenant?
Worked example: How much debt do you need for a blocking stake in a syndicated loan?
Worked example: How is compounded SOFR in arrears calculated on a loan?
Worked example: How much of an asset sale must prepay the loan in a credit agreement?
Worked example: How much value can a borrower move to an unrestricted subsidiary?
Worked example: Does a term loan repricing pay for the 101 soft call premium?
Worked example: How is a loan prepayment applied in inverse order of maturity?
A Practitioner's Guide to Synthetic Securitization, Regulatory Capital Relief, and How a Bank and a Credit Fund Price the Same Tranche
The six workbooks that produced every figure in Significant Risk Transfer, corrected, with a blank set, working documents, forty questions and three cases. Free, no sign-up.
Worked example: Should a retained 1250 per cent position be deducted or risk-weighted?
Worked example: How do you calculate the SEC-IRBA risk weight of an SRT tranche?
Worked example: What is the most a bank can pay for SRT protection?
Worked example: How do you calculate the IRB risk weight of a corporate loan?
Worked example: How do you calculate the return on an SRT tranche?
Worked example: How much capital does STS status save on a synthetic SRT?
Worked example: How do you pass the first-loss test for significant risk transfer?
Worked example: Pro rata vs sequential amortisation in an SRT: who gains?
Worked example: How do you calculate KIRB for a securitised loan portfolio?
Worked example: Vertical slice or random selection: which SRT retention costs less?
Worked example: How thick should the first-loss tranche be in an SRT?
Worked example: How much does an SRT raise a bank's CET1 ratio?
Worked example: How do you calculate the SEC-SA risk weight of an SRT tranche?
Worked example: Funded vs unfunded SRT protection: which releases more capital?
Worked example: What happens to SRT capital relief if KIRB rises?
Worked example: How much capital does synthetic excess spread cost in an SRT?
Worked example: Does the output floor reduce SRT capital relief?
Worked example: How do you calculate the expected loss of an SRT tranche?
Worked example: How do you pass the mezzanine test for significant risk transfer?
Worked example: How much does issuer risk cost an SRT credit-linked note investor?
Credit Investing by the Numbers: Bonds, Loan Funds, BDCs and Private Credit Funds, Default, Recovery and the Real Yield
The companion files of The Credit Investor: three workbooks that reproduce every figure in the book, blank working sheets for your own portfolio and a 60-minute test with its answer key.
Worked example: How do you calculate a high-yield bond's yield after expected default losses?
Worked example: How do you calculate a BDC's dividend coverage ratio?
Worked example: Is a BDC trading at a discount to NAV actually cheap?
Worked example: How do you calculate the modified duration of a bond?
Worked example: How do you calculate yield to maturity on a bond?
Worked example: What does a private credit interval fund earn after fees?
Worked example: How do you calculate yield to worst on a callable bond?
Worked example: How do you calculate the break-even default rate of a CLO tranche?
Worked example: How do you calculate the weighted average yield of a bond portfolio?
Worked example: What does a floating-rate loan fund actually return?
Worked example: How do you calculate a bond's holding period return?
Worked example: How does proration work in an interval fund repurchase offer?
Worked example: How does a bond ladder work? A worked five-bond example
Worked example: How do you calculate the yield on a Treasury bill?
Worked example: How do you calculate the 30-day SEC yield of a bond fund?
Worked example: How do you calculate the real after-tax yield on a bond?
Worked example: How do you calculate the discount margin on a floating rate note?
Worked example: How long does a bond fund take to recover from a rate rise?
Worked example: Current yield vs yield to maturity: why do they differ?
Worked example: How do you calculate the convexity of a bond?
The Appendix C borrowing base running live off a tape of 1,880 contracts, the Meridian transaction end to end, and trigger design. Free Excel workbooks.
Worked example: How do you set an advance rate from a loss curve?
Coming soon on Amazon · Free companion files
The companion files of The Corporate Restructuring Handbook: three workbooks that reproduce every figure in the book, a blank 13-week cash flow and waterfall, six working forms, forty questions and three worked cases.
Coming soon on Amazon · Free companion files
Start with The Distressed Debt Investor by Julian R. Sterling. It is the most read title in this list, and like the others it is built on one fully specified worked case whose every printed figure is reproduced in a free Excel workbook.
Yes. Every title in this guide has a free companion page on julianrsterling.com with the workbooks, blank templates and checklists. They need no account and no email address.
Analysts, associates and managers who need to compute the numbers rather than describe them: each book follows one case from the first input to the decision, at practitioner level.
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