Amir Rashid
Verified Expert in Finance
Finance Expert
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Toptal member since August 12, 2021
Amir is a decisive and trusted CFO who led the financial team of a multi-billion dollar group of companies in the manufacturing and service sectors. He secured financing of more than $3 billion for new ventures and finalized their financial feasibility studies. He also worked in the assurance and advisory department of PwC for nine years. He went on to join freelancing as it offered an opportunity to work for a diverse client base, operating in various sectors and geographical areas.
Career Highlights
Education Highlights
Certification Highlights
Expertise
Work Experience
CFO
Modern Industrial Investment Group
- Collaborated closely with project teams and various public and private financial institutions and secured financing for projects ranging from $15 million to $2.5 billion.
- Prepared financial feasibility of various projects in the chemical, mining, renewable energy, automotive, and healthcare sectors with total project costs ranging from $30 million to $5 billion.
- Carried out detailed due diligence of projects in various sectors from the buyer side and determined the market value using valuation models. Successfully negotiated the value of projects with suppliers and managed to close the deal.
- Reduced the stock turnover from 180 to 45 days by monitoring consumption against forecasts. Isolated slow and fast-moving items and identified new suppliers with short lead times.
- Slashed the operating costs for group companies by up to 10%, enhancing the profit margins without impacting commercial progress.
- Prepared a financial feasibility study for vertical farming projects. The study identified the investment requirement, commercial model, and which combination is the most profitable.
- Carried out market research for new projects and established pricing strategy and sales terms based on customer segment.
- Prepared the initial budget of three EPC contracts worth more than $500 million, a monitoring mechanism to ensure overall cost remains within the budget, and a mechanism for invoicing and collection. Arranged initial finances for the projects.
CFO
Modern Chemical and Services
- Established the finance department of a newly established company.
- Hired and trained the finance team and established accounting policies.
- Collaborated with board members to establish management reporting for stakeholders.
- Led Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) to secure 75% of the total project cost from SIDF for seven years with a grace period of two years. SIDF financing carries interest of less than 2% per annum.
- Set up a pricing model for the company products according to customer segments and established the sales terms for various customer segments.
Assurance Manager
PwC
- Led the external audit as a lead manager of Saudi Telecom Company, Zain Saudi Arabia, National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia, Ericsson, and Nokia.
- Delivered team-based financial advisory services to Zain Saudi Arabia during the initial public offering (IPO) and performed due diligence to increase the company's share capital.
- Seconded to PwC Sweden to conduct Ericsson’s SOX control testing and PwC Finland to perform Nokia’s SOX control testing.
- Led the internal audit of Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) customer care project.
Consultant
Maher and Accountants
- Helped newly established companies set up their finance departments.
- Advised companies on the optimal capital structure.
- Provided accounting services, where I prepared the books of accounts in accordance with statutory regulations.
Education
Bachelor's Degree in Finance, Accounting, and Audits
University of Punjab - Lahore, Pakistan
Certifications
Associate Chartered Accountant (CA)
Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand (CA ANZ)
Certified Practising Accountant (CPA)
CPA Australia
Fellow Member of Association of Chartered Accountant (FCA)
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan
Fellow Member of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA)
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, UK
Skills
Finance
Equity Financing, Financial Management, Financial Reporting, Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Budgeting, Cost-benefit Analysis, Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC), Equity Valuation, CFO, Financial Modeling, Valuation, Fundraising, Accounting, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Startup Funding, Three-statement Modeling, Forecasting, Private Equity, M&A (Buy-side), Private Company Valuation, M&A Modeling, Revenue & Expense Projections, Debt Raises, Due Diligence
Industry Expertise
Early-stage Startups, Real Estate
Other
Financials, Feasibility Studies, Debt Financing, Corporate Governance, Audits, Financing, Reporting, Compliance, Management, Investments, Business Models, Interim CFO, Pricing Models, Corporate, Excel 365, SaaS, SOX Compliance, Startups, Consulting, Acquisitions, Revenue & Pricing Support, Business Analysis, Sage ERP
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