Head of Fund Accounting, Private Markets

Job description

About Muzinich & Co. Muzinich & Co. is a privately-owned, institutionally-focused investment firm specialising in public and private corporate credit. Founded in 1988 and headquartered in New York and London, the firm operates from 18 offices globally. Muzinich's Private Markets platform spans Private Debt, Parallel Lending, Capital Solutions and Aviation Finance, with a focus on the lower-mid corporate credit market in Europe, Asia and the US. The Private Markets platform continues to scale, with strong demand from institutional LPs and growing interest from the private wealth channel via ELTIF and evergreen structures. This is an opportunity to lead the fund accounting function at a privately-owned, growth-oriented platform with a long-standing institutional credit franchise. Role purpose The Head of Fund Accounting, Private Markets leads the fund accounting function across Muzinich's Private Markets platform. The role owns oversight of the end-to-end Fund NAV process across outsourced fund administrators, with the capability to shadow and independently re-perform high-risk components together with, fund-level financial reporting, audit deliverables and the day-to-day accounting interaction with fund administrators, depositaries and auditors across a multi-jurisdictional book of funds, SMAs and semi-liquid vehicles. The Head of Fund Accounting reports to the COO, Private Markets and operates as the senior technical accounting authority for the platform. The role is oversight-led on an outsourced administration model, remaining close enough to the detail at month-end and quarter-end to challenge administrator output line by-line, while leading the team, the controls environment and continuous improvement of the fund accounting operating model. Key responsibilities NAV production & fund accounting Own the end-to-end Fund NAV process across all Private Markets funds, including drawdown-based closed-ended structures, SMAs and semi-liquid / evergreen vehicles, working closely with fund administrators and the depositary. Manage the production of estimated NAVs for semi-liquid funds and the validation of monthly and quarterly NAVs across the platform. Oversee preparation and review of fund accounting computations: equalisation, management fee accruals, drawdowns and distributions, capital account roll-forwards, IRR and other performance measurement, currency hedge exposure, tax accruals and intra-group financing. Own multicurrency mechanics across the platform: hedged share-class P&L allocation, FX translation conventions across EUR / USD / GBP vehicles, and equalisation and fee computations spanning currencies. Provide fund-level oversight of externally valued and externally administered positions (including aviation assets and CLO retention holdings, the latter a small component of the platform with fully outsourced CLO-level reporting), with documented valuation challenge and consolidation-boundary analysis (IFRS 10) agreed with auditors. Review waterfall and carried-interest calculations, GP / LP allocations and incentive fee mechanics. Maintain robust control and reconciliation processes across cash, positions, valuations and accruals. Treasury, distributions & deal support Lead preparation of Fund dividend and distribution recommendations; coordinate payment cycles with treasury, administrators and custodians. Manage the tracking, accounting and coordination of Fund expense payments and intra-group recharges. Support the execution of private loan deal closings, settlements and funding, including liaison with the investment team, loan agents, legal counsel and administrators. Support drawdown notices, capital call mechanics and equalisation processes for new investor closings. Reporting, audit & regulatory Lead the production of Fund audited Financial Statements under IFRS, Lux GAAP and US GAAP as applicable; own auditor relationships at working level and resolve technical accounting matters. Oversee the preparation and quality control of investor reports, including quarterly LP packs, capital account statements and ad-hoc client reporting. Own the outsourced tax programme delivered by the external tax advisor: maintain the per-entity compliance calendar across all domiciles, govern engagement and variation letters against a defined authority matrix, retain classification decisions in-house (including entity-level tax regime and FATCA / CRS classifications), challenge scope and fees, and quality-review advisor deliverables. Coordinate regulatory filings, including Solvency II look-through, AIFMD Annex IV, SFDR, FATCA / CRS and other jurisdiction-specific filings. Prepare Fund-Board materials related to NAVs, drawdowns, distributions and expense approvals; act as the day-to-day accounting contact for the Boards. Deliver joint-venture and bank-partner reporting (including the SMBC JV programme): monthly and board-cycle packs, waterfall and deployment reporting, and alignment to the banking partner’s group reporting calendar and governance cadence. Fund launches, structures & investor onboarding Lead the accounting workstream for new fund launches, share classes and fund-structure changes, including operating model design, chart of accounts, administrator scoping and reporting templates. Support onboarding of investors into the Funds, including operational due diligence support, side letters, transfers and assignments. Contribute to evaluation and onboarding of new fund administrators and depositaries; lead transitions where required. Controls, projects & continuous improvement Maintain and enhance the controls environment around the NAV process and fund accounting workflow, in partnership with Risk, Compliance and Internal Audit. Identify and deliver process automation and efficiency initiatives across the fund accounting function; partner with the COO on the broader data and technology roadmap, including selective use of AI / agentic tooling within control-rich workflows. Lead cross-departmental projects with Investment, Legal, Tax, Compliance and IR teams. Contribute to RFPs, DDQs and ODD meetings as the fund accounting subject-matter expert. Leadership Line-manage the Private Markets fund accounting team — recruit, develop, coach and provide succession planning for a team spanning fund controller, senior fund accountant and fund accountant levels. Set objectives, performance standards and development plans; create stretch and visibility for high performers. Champion a strong culture of accuracy, accountability and continuous improvement. Experience & qualifications Qualifications: Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA, CPA or equivalent). Experience: Minimum 12 years post-qualification experience, with the majority spent in fund accounting or finance roles within Private Debt, Private Credit, Private Equity or Private Markets asset managers, or in a senior Big 4 / specialist administrator role serving such clients. Technical knowledge: Strong working knowledge of partnership accounting, capital call and distribution calculations, management fee and waterfall calculations, financial statement preparation under IFRS and Lux GAAP / US GAAP, consolidation judgement for structured / SPV chains (IFRS 10, including the investment entity exception), and multicurrency allocation across hedged share classes. Products: Familiarity with primary and secondary Debt market or private equity products preferred; knowledge of asset management, RIA / 40 Act, UCITS and Solvency II contexts is a plus. Fund structures: Hands-on experience with Luxembourg, Irish, Cayman, US (Delaware) and Singapore-domiciled structures, SMAs, semi-liquid / evergreen vehicles and SPV / intra-group financing. Service providers: Track record of managing fund administrators, depositaries and auditors at working level. Systems: Strong proficiency in Excel and accounting / fund accounting systems and databases; comfort with reporting and data tools, and openness to automation and AI-augmented workflows. Leadership: Prior experience leading or supervising a fund accounting team; clear management, hiring and coaching capability. Personal attributes Quick study — able to handle complex matters across multiple funds and initiatives simultaneously. High energy and self-starter — highly motivated and confident operating independently. Strong attention to detail without losing sight of the bigger picture. Collaborative — works effectively in a non-hierarchical, team-oriented environment. High level of accountability and ability to prioritise effectively under deadline pressure. Curious and pragmatic — combines analytical rigour with sound judgement and common sense. and pragmatic — combines analytical rigour with sound judgement and common sense. Adaptable — embraces process improvement and acts as an agent of change.