Industries
Startups and VC-backed companies
Finbryn keeps monthly books for Hong Kong startups and venture-backed companies, calculating burn and runway for board reporting and recording SAFE and convertible note activity in Xero or QuickBooks Online. Books are kept to the standard a practising Hong Kong CPA can audit without rework, whatever the funding stage.
Management report
Illustrative client · August 2026
HKD
| Line | Aug | Jul | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 142,380 | 131,904 | +10,476 |
| Cost of sales | (51,260) | (48,115) | (3,145) |
| Gross profit | 91,120 | 83,789 | +7,331 |
| Payroll | (46,300) | (45,900) | (400) |
| SoftwareNoted | (6,480) | (5,490) | (990) |
| Rent | (8,000) | (8,000) | 0 |
| Other operating | (9,215) | (9,870) | +655 |
| Net income | 21,125 | 14,529 | +6,596 |
Reviewer's note
Software is up on last month after two seats were added mid-month. Revenue includes one milestone invoice that will not repeat next month.
Illustrative. An example of the document, not a client's figures.
Exceptions report
Where the books usually hurt
Burn rate and runway numbers get recalculated by hand in a spreadsheet before every board meeting
Convertible notes, SAFEs and equity transactions get recorded incorrectly or not at all until a raise forces the issue
Expense categorization does not match what investors expect to see on a standard startup chart of accounts
R&D-eligible spending is not tracked separately, so the credit opportunity gets missed at tax time
Investors and the auditor read the same numbers
A Hong Kong startup raising from Cyberport, the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) or private investors usually needs two things from its books at once: a clean burn and runway figure for the next board update, and financial statements a practising Hong Kong CPA can audit without a scramble. Under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622), every Hong Kong company must file an annual audit regardless of stage, revenue or whether it is still pre-profit, and investors doing diligence will ask to see it. Treating the monthly close as prep for that audit, rather than a separate exercise, saves a rebuild later.
What we track each month
We reconcile the bank, card and any Brex, Ramp or similar spend platform against the ledger in Xero or QuickBooks Online, then calculate burn rate and runway as part of the close so the figure a founder presents to the board is the same one that ties back to the books. SAFEs, convertible notes and other early-stage instruments are recorded on the balance sheet and updated as terms convert or change, rather than left as a footnote reconstructed at year end. Expense categorisation follows a startup-standard chart of accounts investors recognise, which shortens diligence rather than generating follow-up questions.
Territorial tax and grant funding
Hong Kong taxes profits on a territorial basis, and many early-stage companies have no assessable profits yet regardless of where revenue is sourced. Grant funding from Cyberport, HKSTP or InvestHK schemes is tracked separately from trading income so it is clear in the accounts which figures are operating revenue and which are grant proceeds, a distinction both investors and the auditor will look for.
Handover on your terms
The books live in your own accounting file, reviewed by a named pod before delivery with a memo on anything that changed. Terms are set out in your engagement letter.
Questions
Frequently asked questions: Startups and VC-backed companies
Do pre-revenue Hong Kong startups still need a statutory audit?
Yes. Every Hong Kong company must have its financial statements audited annually by a practising Hong Kong CPA under the Companies Ordinance, regardless of revenue stage, unless the company is dormant.
Do you record SAFEs and convertible notes?
Yes, those instruments are recorded on the balance sheet and updated as terms convert or change, so year-end figures reconcile to actual cap table events.
Do you track Cyberport or HKSTP grant funding separately from revenue?
Yes, grant proceeds are recorded separately from trading income so the accounts clearly distinguish operating revenue from grant funding.
Can you support a startup that holds funds in a foreign currency ahead of a Hong Kong spend?
Yes. Funds held in USD or another currency are tracked against the HKD equivalent, with movements between accounts reconciled the same way, so runway calculations reflect real available cash rather than a stale exchange rate.
Does your work change once a startup moves from pre-revenue to its first paying customers?
The bookkeeping itself does not change, but reporting usually expands to include revenue recognition and customer-level metrics investors ask about, layered onto the same books rather than requiring a separate system or a fresh migration.
Can you produce a monthly burn and runway report for the board?
Yes, burn and runway are calculated as part of the monthly close and formatted for board reporting.
Do you track SAFE and convertible note activity?
Yes, those instruments are recorded on the balance sheet and updated as terms convert or change.
What are the common bookkeeping challenges for a startups and VC-backed companies business?
Beyond the basics, expense categorization does not match what investors expect to see on a standard startup chart of accounts and r&D-eligible spending is not tracked separately, so the credit opportunity gets missed at tax time come up often in this industry. We build the chart of accounts and reconciliation process around those specific patterns rather than a generic template that ignores how the business actually operates.
What software do you support for startups and VC-backed companies?
We work inside QuickBooks Online and Xero, along with the other tools listed on this page that are common in the startups and VC-backed companies industry. If you have no file yet, we set one up in your name so you own it from day one.
Related services
- BookkeepingMonthly bookkeepingOngoing monthly bookkeeping: transactions sorted into categories, accounts reconciled and month-end reports delivered in the software you already use.
- BookkeepingCatch-up and cleanup bookkeepingMonths or years of books brought up to date and reconciled, with a written record of every adjustment, so monthly bookkeeping can start from a clean base.
Next step
Talk to the team that would run your books
A short call covers your setup, your software and what a first month would look like. You get a written scope and price after it.