Virtual CFO Services for Growing Businesses
Our virtual CFO services give your business a senior finance head part-time, without the cost of a full-time hire. We close your books every month, send an MIS, forecast cash and own the GST, TDS and ROC calendar, so you see the numbers while they can still change a decision.
What it is
A virtual CFO is an outside finance team that does the work of a chief financial officer, part-time and largely remotely. Your accountant records what happened. A CFO tells you what it means and what to do next: which customer is paying late, or whether you can afford the new machine.
The work runs on a monthly cycle: close the books, prepare a management information system (MIS) report, review it with you. Statutory filings go on the GST portal, the Income Tax e-filing portal and the MCA V3 portal as each date falls due.
No licence is needed for the role, but one legal line applies. Section 144 of the Companies Act, 2013 bars a company’s auditor from providing accounting and book keeping, management services or outsourced financial services to it. So the firm that audits your company cannot also be its virtual CFO.
Who it applies to
You have outgrown one accountant
Turnover has grown, but finance is still one accountant and the owner’s evenings.
You borrow from a bank
Borrowers owe the bank stock statements and covenant figures. Take a Faridabad auto-components maker whose drawing power rests on its monthly stock statement: built from unclosed books, it leaves the limit idle or fails the next stock audit.
You have raised outside money
After a funding round, investors expect a budget, regular updates and a board pack. Build that rhythm in the first month; retrofitting it later is painful.
Why it matters
Decide on this month’s numbers
An MIS that lands a few days after month-end lets you act on last month’s margins. Audited accounts six months after year-end only tell you history.
Spot cash gaps weeks ahead
Picture a Ballabgarh trading business where GST, salaries and a big supplier payment all fall in the same October week. A rolling forecast flags that clash in August, in time to chase a collection or plan a drawal.
Stop missing filings
One person owns the calendar. Here is the catch: small delays get expensive. Late AOC-4 and MGT-7 filings cost ₹100 a day in additional fees, and a missed DIR-3 KYC deactivates a director’s DIN until ₹5,000 is paid.
What we take off your plate
Close the month and send the MIS
Books closed by an agreed working day; bank, GST and TDS reconciled; then an MIS showing sales, gross margin, overheads, receivables, payables and cash against budget.
Forecast cash 13 weeks out
A rolling 13-week and 12-month forecast, updated at every close, showing when you will need the limit and how much headroom is left.
Set the budget and track it
An annual budget built with you, by product, branch or department, followed by a monthly budget-versus-actual so variances are explained and acted on.
Own the compliance calendar
GST returns, TDS deposits and quarterly statements, advance tax, DIR-3 KYC and your annual ROC filings, all on one calendar. We file them, or check before your team files; regular GST return filing slots straight in.
Handle the bank
Stock and book-debt statements, CMA data for renewals and enhancements, DSCR and covenant workings, and replies to the bank’s queries.
Report to investors and the board
Board packs, investor updates and fund-utilisation summaries. When a Gurugram software startup that closed a seed round sends its monthly update, it comes from the same MIS the founders use.
Virtual CFO, bookkeeping or a full-time CFO?
| Bookkeeping | Virtual CFO | Full-time CFO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main job | Record transactions and keep ledgers current | Turn closed books into decisions: MIS, forecasts, budgets, bank and investor reporting | Run the whole finance function in-house |
| Looks at | The month just gone | Last month and the next twelve | Everything, every day |
| Compliance | Supplies data for returns | Owns the GST, TDS and ROC calendar; reviews before filing | Owns it, usually with a team |
| Cost | Lowest | A fixed monthly fee | A senior salary and benefits |
| Best for | Small businesses with simple books | Growing businesses that need CFO judgement, not a CFO’s full salary | Larger companies, and those the law requires to have one |
If your books are behind, our online bookkeeping service brings them current first; the CFO layer sits on top.
The law draws a line too. Rule 8 of the Companies (Appointment and Remuneration of Managerial Personnel) Rules, 2014 requires every listed company, and every other public company with paid-up share capital of ₹10 crore or more, to have whole-time key managerial personnel under Section 203, a CFO included. For them, a virtual CFO supports the in-house team; it does not replace it.
What we need from you
To start
- Last two years’ financial statements and income tax returns
- Recent GST returns
- This year’s TDS returns
- Bank sanction letters and loan terms
- Read-only access to your accounting software
Every month
- Bank statements
- Sales and purchase invoices
- Payroll and expense details
- Closing stock figures
- New contracts or loans
From you as the owner
- Targets for the year
- Decisions coming up: hiring, capex, a new branch
- A fixed monthly review slot
How it works
Review where the books stand
We read last year’s accounts, GST and TDS filings, bank terms and MCA records. Then we list what to fix first.
Agree the reports and the calendar
We agree the MIS format, the monthly close date and who files what. You get one calendar covering GST, TDS, income tax and ROC.
Close the month on a fixed date
In practice, most of the work sits here: books closed, bank reconciled, input tax credit matched with the GST portal, TDS checked and adjustments booked.
Walk you through the numbers
A monthly meeting on the MIS and the cash forecast: what changed, why, and what to do about it.
Report to the bank, board and investors
Bank statements, investor updates and board packs go out from the same closed numbers.
How long it takes
Set up in the first month
The first cycle goes on review and clean-up: opening balances, ledger mapping, the compliance calendar. If the books are far behind, catch-up comes first, on a timeline agreed before we begin.
Close, report and review every month
After set-up, every month looks the same. Close, MIS, review. We fix the close so GST data is ready before GSTR-3B falls due: the 20th, or the 24th for quarterly filers in Haryana and Delhi.
Track statutory dates through the year
For FY 2025-26, CBDT extended audit cases on 28 September 2026: tax audit report by 21 October 2026, ITR by 21 November 2026. Companies file AOC-4 within 30 days of the AGM and MGT-7 within 60 days.
When you need it
The bank asks harder questions
A renewal or stock audit throws up queries your accountant cannot answer quickly. That is the moment for CFO-level support.
Investors want a monthly pack
Once outside money is in, a fixed monthly pack keeps the discussion on decisions, not on whose numbers are right.
You cross a threshold
For FY 2025-26, tax audit applies above ₹1 crore of business turnover, or ₹10 crore where cash receipts and payments are each within 5%. Late ROC fees or a GST notice mean the calendar has no owner.
Frequently asked questions
What does a virtual CFO do that our accountant does not?
A virtual CFO interprets the numbers; an accountant records them. Your accountant posts entries and files returns. A virtual CFO closes the month to a fixed date, builds the MIS, forecasts cash for the next 13 weeks and 12 months, sets the budget, and handles bank and investor reporting. You keep your accountant; the two roles fit together, and cleaner books make the CFO work faster.
Can our statutory auditor also act as our virtual CFO?
No, not for a company. Section 144 of the Companies Act, 2013 bars the auditor from providing accounting and book keeping, management services or outsourced financial services to the company, directly or indirectly. So your virtual CFO and your auditor must be separate. That works in your favour: an independent auditor testing your CFO team’s numbers is exactly what banks and investors want to see.
When does a company have to appoint a full-time CFO?
When it is listed, or is a public company with paid-up share capital of ₹10 crore or more. Rule 8 of the managerial personnel rules requires these companies to have whole-time key managerial personnel, including a CFO, under Section 203. Default costs the company ₹5 lakh, and each director and KMP in default ₹50,000 plus ₹1,000 a day, capped at ₹5 lakh. Private companies fall outside Rule 8, so a virtual CFO suits them well.
Which compliance dates will you track for us?
Every date that applies to you, on one calendar: GSTR-3B by the 20th for monthly filers, or the 24th for quarterly filers in Haryana and Delhi; monthly TDS deposits and the quarterly statements, now Forms 138, 140 and 144 under the Income-tax Rules, 2026; AOC-4 and MGT-7 after the AGM; and DIR-3 KYC once every three financial years. Late AOC-4 and MGT-7 cost ₹100 a day, so one owner for the calendar saves real money.
Do we still need a bookkeeper if we have a virtual CFO?
Yes, someone still has to post the daily entries. A virtual CFO works on closed books; it does not replace data entry. Keep your in-house accountant, or hand bookkeeping to us so entries, reconciliations and the month-end close sit in one place. Either way, we set the chart of accounts and cut-off rules, so each month’s MIS compares cleanly with the last.
How does a virtual CFO help with bank loans?
By giving the bank numbers it can rely on, in its format. We prepare stock and book-debt statements, CMA data, projections and DSCR workings, and answer queries. For micro and small enterprises with limits up to ₹5 crore, RBI says working capital limits are computed on at least 20% of estimated annual turnover, so a realistic sales projection matters. Well-supported numbers mean fewer rounds of questions.
How often will we meet?
Once a month, after the books close. We cover the MIS, budget-versus-actual and the cash forecast, and finish with a short action list. Around big events, such as a bank renewal, a funding round or the tax audit report due on 21 October 2026, we meet more often. Between meetings, call or message whenever a question comes up.
Is a virtual CFO worth it for a business our size?
It is worth it once decisions depend on numbers you do not have in time. A proprietorship with simple books and no loans may need only bookkeeping and filings. Once you carry a bank limit, have investors, or cross the ₹1 crore tax-audit threshold for FY 2025-26, monthly MIS and forecasting pay back. Tell us your plans and we will say honestly which you need.
What it costs
Our fee plus the government fee that applies to your case, quoted before you commit. Tell us the situation and we will price it exactly.
Statutory filings we manage carry their own government fees, shown separately.
Ready to begin?
Send us last year’s accounts and the one number you wish you knew every month, and we will show you what your first MIS would look like.