A fractional CFO is a senior finance leader who works with your business part-time, typically half a day to three days a week, and owns cash flow, forecasting, reporting and funding readiness. For a company in Tokyo, that means board-grade finance leadership from the point you need it, without a full-time salary or a permanent seat on the payroll.
Our fractional CFOs have owned the numbers at
When a chief financial officer is the right call
A fractional CFO earns their place at a specific moment. You usually know which one you are in.
When a funding round is coming
Investor-ready model, clean data room, and a narrative that survives diligence. The CFO runs the process alongside you.
When cash flow has become the constraint
A rolling forecast you trust, collections that hold, and the runway clarity to make the next decision with confidence.
When the board needs more than bookkeeping
Management accounts, KPIs and reporting that turn the monthly close into a basis for decisions, not a backward glance.
When compliance is outpacing the team
Corporate tax, statutory filings and transfer pricing handled properly, with the controls a growing business needs in place.
Where a fractional CFO fits, and where it does not
Best for
- A funding round where the model and data room have to survive diligence
- Cash flow that has become the constraint on every other decision
- A board that needs real management accounts, not just bookkeeping
- Corporate tax, controls and reporting outpacing the finance team
- A capable but junior finance function that needs senior oversight
Not for
- Basic bookkeeping or routine transactional accounting
- A one-off tax return with no wider finance need
- Businesses not yet ready to share the numbers openly
- A junior finance hire to process the day-to-day
Financial leadership, measured on outcomes
A fractional CFO does not advise from the sidelines. They take the finance function and the decisions inside it.
Cash flow and working capital
Forecasting, collections and supplier terms managed so liquidity stops being the thing that keeps you up at night.
Funding and investor readiness
Model, deck and diligence pack built to raise, then the round run end to end.
Reporting and board cadence
A timely monthly close, clear KPIs and reporting the board can actually act on.
Tax, controls and compliance
Corporate tax and statutory filings handled, segregation of duties enforced, and risk kept on the register.
Senior leadership, on terms that fit the business
Business to business, scaled to the engagement, and free of the cost and liability that come with a permanent hire. One leader embeds, with the whole collective behind them.
A fractional CFO, a full-time hire, or a consultant
Three ways to bring in financial leadership. They are not the same.
Fractional
Full-time hire
Consultant or agency
Business to business, scaled to the engagement, one month’s notice.
Salary, benefits, insurance and severance exposure.
A scoped project or retainer, with a defined end.
Our engagements typically run 30 to 60% less than a full-time hire.
A senior package whether the workload justifies it or not.
Day rates or project fees that add up fast for anything ongoing.
Embedded within weeks, with the collective behind them.
A search, a notice period, then onboarding before any output.
Fast to start, but external and rarely embedded in the business.
Owns the finance function and the decisions in it.
Owns the function, but as a permanent fixed cost.
Advises or delivers a defined scope, then hands back; the work stays with you.
A finance leadership gap that needs an owner, not just a report.
Permanent, full-load finance capacity you can keep busy.
A defined advisory or delivery project with a clear finish line.
What a fractional CFO costs
A fractional CFO engagement is priced on time and scope, not on a salary. Most run half a day to three days a week, 4 to 24 hours, over six to twenty-four months, contracted business to business with one month's notice either way. Our engagements typically run 30 to 60% less than a comparable full-time CFO appointment, with no permanent headcount added.
Time
Half a day to three days a week, 4 to 24 hours
Typical term
Six to twenty-four months, with one month's notice either way
Versus full time
Our engagements typically run 30 to 60% less than a comparable full-time CFO
Commitment
A company-to-company services contract, with no permanent headcount added
Figures reviewed October 2026.
From the brief to the match, in weeks
Tell us where you need leadership and we handle the rest. The guided brief takes a couple of minutes and makes the first conversation more useful.
Tell us the moment
Share where you need leadership and what good looks like.
A conversation
We talk through the brief and sharpen the requirement together.
The match
We search our collective of 800+ curated executives for the closest fit.
Deployment
You choose, and your leader embeds within weeks to make an immediate impact.
The questions founders ask first
Where a fractional CFO makes the difference
The moments this role is most often brought in for. See how the engagement works for each.
One role, or a blended leadership setup
Many engagements start with one executive and grow, and some reach the board, where we match you with non-executive directors from the same collective. See the full range of C-suite practices and specialised appointments, or tell us the moment and we will help you choose.
