Via empanelled professional
Senior financial leadership, without the full-time cost.
Lekha's Virtual CFO service gives growing businesses and funded startups access to CFO-level strategy, investor reporting, and cash flow management on a fractional basis.
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What is virtual cfo services?
A Virtual CFO provides a business with the senior financial leadership it needs — strategy, cash flow management, investor reporting, board preparation, and compliance oversight — without the cost of a full-time in-house CFO. The difference between a Virtual CFO and your accountant is that an accountant records what happened; a Virtual CFO uses that data to advise on what should happen next.
Who it's for
Is this right for you?
- Funded startups needing investor-grade monthly and quarterly reporting
- Growth-stage businesses that have outgrown bookkeeping but cannot yet justify a full-time CFO
- Companies with a board that requires regular financial governance and reporting
- Businesses going through a fundraising process and needing financial model support
- Companies in a tight cash period needing disciplined 13-week cash flow management
When you need this
- Your investor is asking for a board pack and you don't have a reporting process in place
- You're managing cash manually in a spreadsheet and can't see the next 90 days clearly
- You're starting a fundraising process and need the financial model and data room financials ready
- You've grown past 30 employees and the board wants proper financial governance
- Your annual budget went untracked and you can't explain the variance to investors
What you get
Key benefits
Investor-grade reporting as standard
Monthly reporting packs and board presentations prepared to the format institutional investors and independent directors expect — cohort data, runway analysis, and forward-looking commentary, not just historical P&L.
Cash visibility before it becomes a crisis
A 13-week rolling cash flow forecast updated weekly lets you see shortfalls 60 days before they happen — when you still have time to act on them.
Financial strategy in the room where decisions get made
Pricing decisions, hiring plans, capital allocation, and M&A — the Virtual CFO brings the financial model and the independent analysis, not just the numbers.
One engagement, one invoice
Unlike hiring multiple specialists for strategy, reporting, and compliance separately, the Virtual CFO engagement covers the whole financial leadership function under a single monthly arrangement.
Common questions
Frequently asked
How is a Virtual CFO different from my accountant or bookkeeper?
An accountant or bookkeeper focuses on recording past transactions accurately and keeping you compliant. A Virtual CFO uses that data to advise on decisions — what the cash runway means for hiring plans, whether the current burn rate is sustainable, how to present the financial story to investors, and what the board needs to see to govern effectively. The bookkeeper looks backward; the Virtual CFO looks forward.
What is a 13-week cash flow forecast?
A 13-week (approximately 3 months) rolling weekly cash flow model that tracks every expected cash inflow and outflow — customer collections, vendor payments, payroll, tax payments — to show your ending bank balance week by week. It is the most practical tool for managing liquidity in a growth-stage business because it's specific enough to be actionable but long enough to identify problems before they arrive.
What does investor reporting typically include?
A standard monthly investor report includes: revenue vs. budget (and MoM, YoY growth), cash and runway, key operating metrics, a brief explanation of variances, and forward-looking commentary on the next month. Quarterly board packs add a fuller strategic update and often include a reforecast.
At what stage does a startup need a Virtual CFO?
The signal is usually when financial decisions start outpacing what a founder can manage alone, or when investors start asking for structured reporting. In practice this is typically after a seed round or after crossing ₹50–75 lakh in monthly revenue. Earlier-stage companies typically need bookkeeping and MIS reporting rather than a full CFO engagement.
Does the Virtual CFO engagement include the statutory audit?
No. The statutory audit is legally required to be performed by an independent CA in practice and cannot be delivered by Lekha. The Virtual CFO engagement covers strategy, reporting, cash flow, and compliance oversight. For the statutory audit, Lekha connects you to an empanelled CA.
Can the Virtual CFO help prepare for a fundraising round?
Yes — Fundraising Support is an explicit module of the Virtual CFO service. This includes building the investor-facing financial model (3-year projections with clear assumptions), preparing the financial section of the data room, stress-testing the assumptions before investor conversations, and supporting investor Q&A on financial questions during the raise.
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