CFO search for African fintech
TITC runs retained CFO searches for fintech and financial services businesses across Africa. For CEOs and investors who need finance to be a weapon, not a cost centre.
The hire that keeps going wrong
The classic trap is promoting the financial controller. They're excellent at the audit, sharp on the numbers, trusted by the team. Then the raise comes, and they freeze in front of a Series B investor or a DFI investment committee.
A real CFO sits between you and the board. They build the model, run the data room, hold their own with the VCs, and tell you the truth when the unit economics don't work. That's a different person from the one who reconciles the month-end.
In African fintech it's harder again. Multi-entity, multi-currency structures. Transfer pricing. Tax across jurisdictions. Prudential and regulatory capital reporting if you're licensed. SARB exchange-control reality. Most candidates have seen one or two of these, not all of them.
What good looks like
A CFO who's raised or exited before and can prove it. Who turns board reporting into something investors trust instead of question. Who's run finance for a regulated, cross-border business. And who's commercial enough to challenge the CEO, not just serve the spreadsheet.
How we run it
We separate the controllers from the CFOs early. The shortlist is built around the specific event ahead of you, whether that's a raise, an audit clean-up, a licence, or an exit.
Common questions
When should a fintech hire its first real CFO?
Usually 6 to 12 months ahead of a serious raise or an exit, while there's still time to clean up the numbers and build investor-grade reporting. Hiring during the raise is too late.
What's the difference between a financial controller and a CFO?
A controller owns accuracy and the close. A CFO owns capital, the board relationship, and the financial strategy behind the business. They're different jobs. Promoting one into the other is the most common and most expensive CFO mistake.
Can TITC find a CFO who has raised capital before?
Yes. Fundraising and transaction track record is a standard screen on our CFO mandates, including raises with VCs, PE and development finance institutions active in Africa.
Discuss a mandate
A raise or exit on the horizon? Let's talk about the finance seat now, not later.