Fractional CFO services in Chicago
Chicago is the United States' most underrated venture ecosystem and the dominant hub for industrial B2B SaaS, agritech, foodtech and financial technology outside of New York.
The city has produced Tempus (oncology AI, IPO 2024), Tovala (smart cooking), Cameo (creator marketplace), M1 Finance (investment platform) and Trove (recommerce infrastructure) at scale, alongside a deep generation of B2B SaaS companies serving manufacturing, logistics, agriculture and financial services. Annual venture deployment consistently exceeds $3B, concentrated in the West Loop, Fulton Market and River North corridors.
We work with Chicago-based startups from seed to Series B+, supporting them on unit economics, monthly close, board packs, hiring plans, fundraise prep and KPI tracking.
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Chicago startup ecosystem
Industrial B2B SaaS and fintech are Chicago's defining verticals
Chicago's startup ecosystem mirrors its corporate DNA: B2B SaaS serving manufacturing, agriculture, logistics and financial services. Tempus raised $1.1B before its 2024 IPO; M1 Finance reached $3.5B AUM from Chicago; Cameo scaled creator monetisation to a $1B valuation from River North. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange and CBOE spawn a sustained stream of fintech and trading-infrastructure spin-outs.
Foodtech and agritech are uniquely strong here
Chicago's position as the US's food-processing capital - home to Kraft Heinz, Conagra, US Foods and the country's largest commodity trading infrastructure - makes it the natural base for foodtech innovation. Tovala (smart oven/meal kit), Foxtrot (retail-tech convenience) and Produce Pay (agri-payments) all scaled from Chicago. The city's agritech corridor connects directly to the grain belt's $400B commodity market.
West Loop, Fulton Market and River North anchor three clusters
Fulton Market - Chicago's converted meatpacking district - is the city's primary tech and innovation campus, housing 1871, Google's Chicago office and dozens of Series A–C companies. The West Loop adjacent cluster hosts B2B SaaS and fintech scaleups. River North is the creative, consumer-tech and early-stage hub, centred on 1871's original campus and Techstars Chicago.
University of Chicago, Northwestern and IIT talent pipeline
University of Chicago's Booth School and Harris School, Northwestern's Kellogg School and the Illinois Institute of Technology collectively supply economics, data science and engineering graduates. Chicago's financial-trading industry - the largest outside New York - provides an unusually deep secondary pipeline of quantitative, risk and finance talent that benefits fintech and data-intensive SaaS founders.
Accelerators and angel networks active in Chicago
Chicago's accelerator landscape is anchored by 1871 and P33, with deep corporate innovation partnerships from the city's Fortune 500 industrial base. These are the most active programmes for venture-backed founders at pre-seed and seed.
1871
1871 is Chicago's flagship tech hub and incubator, based in Merchandise Mart. Houses 500+ companies at any given time across co-working, accelerator and resident programming. Alumni include Foxtrot, Tock, Braintree (acquired by PayPal) and Jellyvision. Named after the year of the Great Chicago Fire - a metaphor for rebuilding and innovation.
MATTER
MATTER is Chicago's healthcare innovation hub, based in the Merchandise Mart alongside 1871. Runs accelerator and incubator programmes for health IT, digital health, MedTech and life-sciences companies. Corporate partners include Advocate Health, Blue Cross Blue Shield Illinois, and Northwestern Medicine. Portfolio has raised $3B+ in funding.
Techstars Chicago
Techstars Chicago is the Chicago cohort of the global Techstars network. Sector-agnostic with a strong fintech, enterprise SaaS and industrialtech track record. Standard $120k investment for 6% equity with a 13-week mentor-led programme. Backed by a large Chicago alumni mentor network.
Polsky Center (University of Chicago)
Polsky Center is the University of Chicago's entrepreneurship and innovation hub, running the New Venture Challenge - one of the country's most competitive university startup competitions. Alumni include Braintree, GrubHub and Narrative Science. Access to U of C's economics and data-science faculty makes it uniquely valuable for analytics and fintech founders.
P33 Chicago
P33 is a civic initiative backed by Chicago's top corporates and philanthropies to make Chicago a top-three US tech hub by 2033. Runs talent programmes, ecosystem-building events and founder support initiatives. Key connector between Chicago's institutional investor base and out-of-market VCs looking for co-investment opportunities.
Jump Capital
Jump Capital is Chicago's most active multi-stage VC, spun out of Jump Trading. Invests $1M–$20M in fintech, data infrastructure and enterprise SaaS. Portfolio includes Kyndryl, Matik and TrueAccord. Chicago's strongest connection between the city's trading-finance talent base and its venture-backed SaaS ecosystem.
Chicago startup accountants vs Flow fractional CFO
Most Chicago startups work with a CPA firm for federal and Illinois state tax, payroll and audit. That role is essential - but it is not the same as having a fractional CFO.
Federal and Illinois state tax, payroll, audit and R&D tax credits. The firms most used by Chicago venture-backed startups.
- Plante Moran
Chicago and Michigan-headquartered Top-15 US firm. Strong technology, manufacturing and private equity practice with deep roots in the Midwest's B2B and industrial company base. Well-regarded for venture-backed company advisory at Series A and beyond.
- Crowe
Chicago-headquartered Top-10 US firm with a dedicated financial services and technology practice. Particularly strong in fintech, banking-tech and risk management advisory - reflecting Chicago's financial-trading heritage.
- Wipfli
Midwest-headquartered Top-20 US firm with a growing Chicago technology and startup practice. Strong in manufacturing-adjacent SaaS, agritech and food-industry technology companies that reflect Chicago's corporate base.
- Sikich
Chicago-based technology-enabled professional services firm with 1,900+ employees. Dedicated startup and emerging-growth practice covering SaaS, manufacturing tech and fintech from seed through Series B.
- RSM Chicago
Top-five US middle-market accounting firm with a large Chicago office. Strong technology and life-sciences practice covering audit, tax and advisory for venture-backed companies from Series A through public company readiness.
Financial modelling, FP&A and fundraise prep. We work alongside your accountant - not instead of them.
- Builds the financial model - revenue assumptions, headcount, unit economics, runway.
- Sets up the monthly FP&A cycle: budget, forecast vs actual, variance analysis.
- Puts together the monthly board pack - P&L, cash, KPIs and forward outlook.
- Prepares the fundraise: investor model, deck financials, data room and diligence prep.
- Keeps the cap table tidy and handles stock option grants and 409A valuations.
- Reports on the KPIs that move the business - ARR, gross margin, CAC payback, retention.
- Pressure tests hiring, pricing and big spend decisions against the model before the founder commits.
- Sits in board meetings and is embedded week-to-week, not just engaged annually for compliance.
We provide fractional CFO services across Chicago and beyond
Simple pricing
No hidden costs, no complicated long-term contracts. We understand how important flexibility is for Chicago startups.
Per month
- Accounting / FP&A tech stack implementation
- Monthly financial statements and reporting pack
- Quarterly board pack with detailed financial analysis (with variance analysis vs. budget, relevant KPI observations etc.)
- Investor-friendly output
Per month
- Everything in Core, plus
- Operating model (via an online platform like Runway or Excel-based)
- Ongoing model maintenance, refining projections, burn/runway management
- Customer cohorts modelling, churn and retention analysis
- LTV / CAC, unit economics analysis
- Cap table management
Per month
- Everything in Grow, plus
- M&A / fundraising support; review of business plan
- Pitch deck preparation
- Investor approach strategy / list building
- Due diligence support and deal negotiation
- Valuation as required and free access to Multiples Pro
Packages shown are illustrative, final pricing is tailored to client requirements.
Recently completed fractional CFO projects
Selected fractional CFO engagements and prior CFO experience.
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