Creditor Support

Creditor Advisory Services That Turn Uncertainty Into Actionable Intelligence

Expert guidance for banks and lenders managing criticized loans and distressed credits

When a company misses its forecast and loan covenants are at risk, trust breaks down between lenders and business owners. The numbers show something’s wrong, but financial statements alone don’t reveal what’s actually happening or whether the situation can be turned around.

As a special assets officer, you’re juggling regulatory pressure, reserve requirements, and the reality that every criticized loan consumes time and resources. You need fast, credible answers: Is this business viable? Can it be rehabilitated? What’s the realistic path forward?

JACO Advisory Group provides creditor advisory services that bring clarity to distressed situations. We’re not advisors who only report numbers—we’re experienced operators who understand what’s driving those numbers and can tell you whether the problems are fixable. Whether you need a rapid assessment, ongoing monitoring, or hands-on restructuring support, we help you protect collateral while finding the best path forward for all stakeholders.

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The Benefits of Working With Experienced Financial Advisors

When a loan moves to your special assets group, time and clarity become critical. Professional creditor advisory services help lenders make informed decisions while business owners benefit from having an objective third party who can restore credibility and bridge communication gaps. Our approach helps both sides by:

Gain Rapid Visibility Into Root Causes: Distinguishing between temporary problems and structural business failures before you invest more time and resources.

Establish Credible Communication: Restoring trust with borrowers through transparent reporting, particularly the 13-week cash flow forecasts that show actual liquidity and decision points.

Assess True Viability: Understanding whether this business can be rehabilitated, needs to be refinanced elsewhere, or should be wound down to maximize recovery.

Preserve Business Value: Identifying and implementing quick cash improvements that stabilize operations and preserve asset value during workout negotiations.

Navigate Complex Stakeholder Dynamics: Balancing the interests of ownership, management, customers, suppliers, and other creditors to find workable solutions.

Accelerate Decision-Making: Providing the analysis and options you need for credit committee presentations, whether that’s continuing forbearance, requiring additional capital, or pursuing exit strategies.

Reduce Reserve Requirements: Demonstrating credible improvement plans that support moving credits out of criticized status and back to performing.

Why Lenders Trust JACO in Distressed Situations

Financial Recovery Advisors Who Understand All Sides

Business Owner Perspective

Our senior advisors have owned and operated businesses. We understand how business owners think, what drives their decisions, and when hope needs to be balanced with hard realities. This helps us assess situations objectively and have candid conversations that move situations forward.

Credible Communication

We establish trust by communicating transparently with all parties. Distressed situations breed mistrust—communication breaks down and skepticism grows on both sides. We restore credibility by reporting facts, not optimistic projections, and delivering on our commitments.

Balanced Stakeholder Focus

The best outcomes happen when all five stakeholder groups—owners, lenders, employees, customers, and suppliers—work together. Our job is balancing those interests to create viable solutions.

Industry Knowledge

We have deep experience in many different industries. This means we quickly understand your borrower’s business model, competitive pressures, and operational challenges.

Hands-On Execution

Unlike firms that provide assessment reports and disappear, we implement solutions alongside management. If we recommend performance improvements, we help execute them. If we identify cash that may be trapped in the system, we work with the team to release it.

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How We Helped a Manufacturing Company Secure a $9.2M Credit Facility After Lender Default

When a 50-year-old Ohio manufacturer lost its founder and faced COVID-19 disruptions, operations deteriorated, and its existing lender refused to renew the credit facility. JACO implemented a 13-week cash flow forecast, developed a comprehensive turnaround plan with multi-year pro forma financials, and secured a new $9.2M credit facility with favorable terms. Within 6 months, the company exceeded projections with 28% revenue growth and 209% EBITDA improvement.

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Our Approach: Clarity, Action, and Transparent Communication

When you engage JACO for creditor advisory services, we focus on answering the questions that matter most to your credit committee:

What’s Actually Causing the Problem?

Financial statements show symptoms—declining sales, margin compression, cash burn. We dig deeper to diagnose root causes. Is this a sales problem where the company lost a major customer? An operational issue where production inefficiencies are eroding margins? A financial control weakness where cost visibility is limited? Accurate diagnosis determines the path forward and what it will take to stabilize operations.

Is This Business Viable?

Not every distressed credit can be rehabilitated. We assess financial health, market position, competitive dynamics, and operational capabilities to give you an honest answer about viability. If the challenges are insurmountable, we tell you early so stakeholders can shift to preserving value rather than prolonging an unworkable situation.

What Are Your Real Options?

We help you evaluate multiple pathways forward: rehabilitation, refinance, sale, recapitalization, court-supervised restructuring, or orderly wind-down. We understand the mechanics of each option—including Chapter 11 reorganizations, Chapter 7 liquidations, 363 bankruptcy sales, ABCs, UCC Article 9 sales, and receiverships—and help you navigate whichever path makes sense for the situation.

What Immediate Actions Will Stabilize Operations?

While you’re evaluating near-term options, the business still needs to operate. We implement quick wins that improve cash flow: 13-week cash forecasts that create visibility and accountability, releasing cash trapped in the business, identifying margin improvements, and establishing performance metrics that show whether management is executing. These improvements often become the foundation for a successful turnaround or increase enterprise value for a sale.

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Beyond Creditor Advisory Services: Comprehensive Business Support

Our work with lenders often extends beyond immediate distressed borrower solutions to other strategic initiatives as borrowers stabilize and grow:

  • Turnaround & Restructuring: When the situation requires a Chief Restructuring Officer or interim leadership to drive the recovery plan.
  • Financial Advisory: Providing interim CFO services, financial systems implementation, and ongoing advisory support as companies emerge from distress.
  • Strategic Planning: Helping stabilized companies develop growth strategies and competitive positioning for long-term success.
  • Operational Performance: Implementing efficiency improvements and margin enhancements that stabilize operations and improve cash flow.

We don’t just help companies survive crises—we help them build sustainable businesses that create value for all stakeholders.

Frequently Asked Questions About Creditor Advisory Support

When should we engage JACO for creditor support?

The sooner you involve experienced advisors, the more options you have. Common triggers include missed forecasts or covenant default, leadership changes or reporting uncertainty, customer concentration risk, liquidity tightening, and sponsor transitions or recap requirements. In each case, early engagement helps you establish control before situations deteriorate and your options narrow.

What types of lenders and creditors do you work with?

We work with commercial banks, regional lenders, private credit funds and direct lenders, sponsor-backed credit positions, and noteholders/creditor groups navigating special situations. Whether you need rapid performance assessment, ongoing portfolio monitoring, workout support, or distressed transaction guidance, we provide the operational and financial expertise that helps protect value and improve outcomes.

How quickly can you deploy after engagement?

We can typically begin within days of initial contact. In crisis situations, speed matters. We’ll rapidly assess the situation and start implementing stabilization measures—particularly the 13-week cash flow forecast—while developing the comprehensive turnaround plan. Our team is experienced at moving quickly without sacrificing quality.

How do you work with business owners during the engagement?

We recognize that business owners may initially view financial advisors as adding cost or representing the lender’s interests. Our approach is to establish credibility quickly by demonstrating independence and showing we’re there to solve problems for the business. We work collaboratively with management to improve operations, release trapped cash, and navigate customer relationships. Once owners see we’re focused on stabilizing and strengthening their business—not just reporting to the bank—we become trusted partners in finding solutions that work for all stakeholders.

What makes JACO different from other financial recovery advisors?

Most financial advisory firms come from accounting backgrounds and focus heavily on financial analysis. We combine financial expertise with deep operational knowledge—we understand what happens on the shop floor, in sales meetings, and with customer relationships. We also have significant experience across many different industries, which means we speak your borrower’s language and understand their business model quickly. Finally, we’re operators who’ve owned businesses, not career consultants. When we recommend something, it’s because we’ve done it ourselves or seen it work in similar situations.

Do you only work with companies already in crisis?

No. While many clients come to us when operational problems have reached critical levels, we strongly encourage proactive engagement. Addressing operational inefficiencies before they create financial distress expands your options and reduces the urgency that forces suboptimal decisions. If you’re experiencing growth pains, noticing declining efficiency, or simply want to build continuous improvement capability before problems emerge, early intervention is far more effective than crisis response.

Ready to Get Clarity on Your Distressed Credit?

Every day of delay in a criticized loan situation reduces your options and increases your risk. The sooner you understand what’s happening and what paths forward are realistic, the better positioned you are to protect collateral and maximize value for all stakeholders.

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