Fractional CFO services, without the full-time cost.

Fractional, virtual, outsourced: the same role

The three terms describe one arrangement — an experienced CFO working part-time, for a fraction of a full-time salary. Fractional CFO is the term most used by venture-backed companies. Virtual CFO usually signals the work is done remotely. Outsourced CFO emphasises that the person sits with a firm rather than on your payroll. At Zinance they are the same engagement, and the same person.

What varies is not the label but the scope. Some engagements are a monthly close review and a board pack. Others run the raise, rebuild the model and sit in front of the investors. Both are fractional CFO work.

What it costs

Published fractional CFO rates run from a few thousand dollars a month for a light retainer to the low tens of thousands for a company in a raise. A full-time CFO is a base salary plus equity plus benefits, which is why most companies under roughly $20M in revenue do not hire one. We break the published rate cards down in what a fractional CFO costs, and our own pricing is on the pricing page.

For e-commerce and inventory businesses

An e-commerce CFO engagement is a different job from a SaaS one. The model turns on contribution margin after fulfilment and returns, on cash tied up in inventory, and on channel-level profitability that a marketplace dashboard will not show you. If that is your business, the e-commerce finance page covers how we set it up, and e-commerce bookkeeping covers the ledger it runs on.

When you actually need one

Usually at one of three moments: the monthly numbers stop answering the questions the board is asking, a raise starts and the model will not survive diligence, or the founder is spending more time in the finance function than in the business. More on the timing in when to hire a fractional CFO, and on the boundary with the rest of the finance function in bookkeeper vs fractional CFO.