The short answer
Berlin mandates are almost always investor-financed. That shifts the work: the most important audience for the numbers is not the house bank but a board that expects monthly reporting, often in English and by its own definitions. The statutory HGB accounts are mandatory but not the steering instrument.
nugrow's network comprises around 500 freelancers across the German-speaking region. For Berlin mandates that means the appointment lives locally. Presence is neither a bottleneck nor a cost factor that drives the decision.
What is different in Berlin
Two sets of books side by side. HGB for the statutory accounts and the tax office, an investor view for steering: ARR, net revenue retention, CAC payback, burn multiple, runway. Both have to come from the same data basis and reconcile to each other. Where that is not cleanly separated, the discussions arise that cost time in board meetings.
Runway is the lead metric. Not the monthly profit but the number of months until the cash runs out – and the question of which results have to be in place by then for the next round to happen. A 13-week cash flow forecast is not a crisis tool here but routine.
Cap table and financing instruments. Convertible loans, SAFEs, liquidation preferences, option pools and their dilution effects are part of the craft. Whoever cannot read the cap table cannot model a round – and whoever only has it in a spreadsheet from the last shareholder resolution has a problem that surfaces in due diligence.
English as the working language. Many Berlin teams work internally in English, with international investors on the board. Reporting has to work in two languages without the definitions drifting apart – one of the most common silent errors.
Public co-investors. IBB Ventures and programmes of the State of Berlin are regularly on board in early rounds. They bring their own reporting and proof obligations that have to be served alongside investor reporting.
On-site presence
The appointment comes from Berlin. Two to three presence days a week are therefore possible without travel setting the rhythm – and without the travel costs that an appointment from elsewhere accumulates noticeably over half a year.
How much presence makes sense depends on the trigger. When building a finance function, in the first weeks of a mandate and around board meetings, negotiations and closing weeks, presence counts. Once reporting runs, fixed dates and presence at the key events are enough. That is settled before the start, not along the way.
Typical triggers
- Preparing a funding round – model, data room, KPI definitions, answers to the questions investors actually ask.
- CFO vacancy between two rounds – keep reporting running while the permanent search proceeds. See CFO handover and vacancy.
- From an outsourced bookkeeper to an in-house finance function – the point at which monthly numbers may no longer arrive six weeks late.
- Extending the runway – cost structure, payment terms, prioritisation, before the round comes under time pressure.
- First due diligence – clearing up what has been left lying since incorporation, before a buyer finds it.
What it costs
Day rates follow role and trigger, not city; the ranges are on the pricing page. Expenses are stated in the proposal. In many mandates the scope is one to two days a week – for a company with 20 to 80 employees that is the order of magnitude at which finance leadership works without a full-time position.
A note for international investors
If your fund is based outside Germany, the two-books point above is the one to plan for. Your portfolio company must file HGB accounts and German tax returns regardless of how your board pack is built, and the reconciliation between the two is a piece of work someone has to own. An interim finance lead who reports in English to your definitions and still keeps the statutory side clean removes a friction that otherwise surfaces at the next audit or the next round.
Frequently asked questions
Does nugrow work on site in Berlin?
Yes. From a network of around 500 freelancers across the German-speaking region we place someone based in Berlin; two to three presence days a week are possible. How much presence makes sense follows the trigger and is settled before the start.
Can the reporting run in English?
Yes. Board reporting, model and data room are kept bilingual, with identical metric definitions on both sides.
What does a startup need from its finance function before a funding round?
A robust model with traceable assumptions, clean historical numbers, defined metrics, a current cap table and a data room that anticipates the standard questions. If one of these is missing, the round takes longer – usually by weeks.
Is a fractional CFO enough instead of a full-time role?
Up to around Series A, usually yes. One to two days a week cover reporting, planning and investor communication. From a certain team size and transaction density the calculation tips towards a permanent hire – and then it is about an orderly handover. See fractional CFO versus interim CFO.
How quickly can a mandate start?
First profiles within 24 hours, start a few days after the decision. The process is in briefing a mandate and comparing proposals.
Read on
Sources and status
The article is based on nugrow's mandate practice with venture-backed companies. Status: September 2026.