Pawan Kesarwani, Finance Expert in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
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Pawan Kesarwani

Verified Expert  in Finance

Bio

Pawan is an experienced finance professional with expertise in financial modeling, scenario building, fundraising, and financial management. He has helped multiple startups to raise over $250 million in the form of equity/debt capital, built and managed their finance function from scratch, and has strategized and executed 30 M&A deals. Pawan likes to freelance for Toptal as it allows him to work on challenging projects with incredible global clients.

Career Highlights

Chief Financial Officer
TMRW - An Aditya Birla Group Venture
Chief Financial Officer
Upscalio
Chief Financial Officer
Mystifly.com

Education Highlights

Master of Business Administration (MBA)
University of Oxford
Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA)
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India
Bachelor of Commerce
University of Allahabad

Certification Highlights

Chartered Accountant
ICAI

Case Studies

Work Experience

Chief Financial Officer

2022 - PRESENT
TMRW - An Aditya Birla Group Venture
  • Devised and implemented the M&A strategy and co-chair the investment committee to take a majority stake in more than eight brands.
  • Set up the finance function as per NSE listed company compliance requirements to handle the integration of acquired businesses and manage daily finance requirements of the business.
  • Steered business finance function to set up guardrails around business performance to ensure the business operation is in line with the budgeted revenue and profitability metrics.
Focus areas: Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Fundraising, Strategy, Financial Modeling, Budgeting, Treasury, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Retail & Wholesale, Venture Funding, Manufacturing, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Pitch Deck Consultant, Revenue & Expense Projections

Chief Financial Officer

2021 - 2022
Upscalio
  • Contributed actively to the fundraising process of USD 55 million, consisting of both debt and equity.
  • Devised and implemented the multi-tier corporate structure to facilitate complex M&A transactions and implemented findings of the due diligence process to invest in 13 brands at beneficial and tax-efficient terms for the business.
  • Set up the finance team of 35 professionals to handle the integration of acquired businesses and manage daily finance requirement of the business.
  • Advised the business to save costs on the operational aspects and procurement, resulting in a reduction of COGS across multiple brands.
Focus areas: Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Budgeting, Fundraising, Financial Modeling, Audits, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Retail & Wholesale, Venture Funding, Manufacturing, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Pitch Deck Consultant, Revenue & Expense Projections

Chief Financial Officer

2017 - 2021
Mystifly.com
  • Led the entire gamut of finance, including accounts, taxation, audit, funding, strategic planning, reporting, revenue management, forecasting, legal, deal analysis, and compliance for all seven entities spread across the world.
  • Implemented a new ERP for multi-geography and currency support, with proper checks and balances around the accounting process, which ensured unqualified opinion from statutory auditors.
  • Spearheaded the implementation of internal control and risk mitigation frameworks to plug long-standing loopholes to bring savings of more than INR 1 Crore per annum and got a favorable opinion for the company in the statutory audit.
  • Set up a revenue management function based on a dynamic reporting platform linked with business intelligence to lead operational profitability on a daily basis, translating into quick decision-making.
  • Turned around the negative (-44%) to positive EBITDA (12%) by spearheading the revenue management team and setting up dynamic rules based on regression models and market intelligence in the pricing engine.
  • Implemented the cost-cutting plan by plugging in operational leakages and optimizing indirect costs, resulting in savings of INR 3 crore per annum.
  • Drove cost reduction plans in client and partner contracts, pricing, business planning and analysis, and the operating model. The biggest win was the implementation of the CDN and cache management platform by reducing infrastructure costs by around 20%.
  • Introduced financial discipline in the payables and receivables management to enhance customer experience and ensure zero disruption even on negative working capital.
Focus areas: Internal Control, Debt Raises, Turnaround, Budgeting, Strategic Planning & Execution, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Financial Modeling, Fundraising, Retail & Wholesale, Venture Funding, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Revenue & Expense Projections

Head of Finance

2015 - 2017
Craftsvilla.com
  • Built a strong finance function from scratch to manage day-to-day business operations and provide periodical reports to the management.
  • Raised Series C funding from VC investors for USD 34 million.
  • Built a financial model for optimal working capital and investing surplus funds for maximizing returns by two times.
  • Led the M&A activities for the acquisition of five targets. The synergy has helped the organization to reduce operating costs by 35% and increase revenue by 1.5X.
  • Strategized and formulated a cost-reduction plan to enable the organization reach its contribution goal of 80%.
Focus areas: Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Financial Reporting, Venture Funding, Budgeting, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Financial Modeling, Fundraising, Retail & Wholesale, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Pitch Deck Consultant

Consultant

2014 - 2015
Strategy and Finance Consultant
  • Strategized and planned the business strategy for an environment-friendly FMCG product for UK market.
  • Advised on the financial viability of a USD 5 million bio-mass power plant.
  • Formulated the investment strategy to invest in the real estate sector.
  • Worked on an eCommerce solution to reduce the cost of logistics and cut wastages, resulting in savings of around 25% YOY.
  • Prepared a business case for the expansion of an MNC in the business of stores, which was duly adopted by the board.
Focus areas: Venture Funding, Business Planning, Budgeting, Financial Modeling, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Fundraising, Manufacturing, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)

Co-founder | Chief Financial Officer

2004 - 2013
Paras Paper Mills
  • Introduced and enhanced financial reporting and statistical analysis tools to make plans.
  • Performed financial reporting and analysis for multiple business units.
  • Made a strategic selection and implemented a new ERP which improved the overall financial reporting functions and cost control processes.
  • Prepared and reviewed MIS reports like profitability reports, monthly rolling forecasts, and more to identify the issues, risks, and saving potentials.
  • Supervised the overall financial performance by providing timely financial analysis—oversaw the finalization of the books as per statutory requirements.
  • Led the preparation of the operating and capital/project budget and monitoring thereof with actuals and reporting of variances. Identified the areas where costs can be reduced, or efficiency can be increased.
  • Monitored the inflow and outflow of funds and ensured the optimum utilization of available funds to accomplish organizational goals.
Focus areas: Budgeting, Growth Capital Raising, Working Capital Management, Financial Reporting, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Financial Modeling, Fundraising, Manufacturing, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
2013 - 2014

Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Finance, Business Administration

University of Oxford - Oxford, United Kingdom

1999 - 2004

Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA) in Finance, Accounts, & Taxation

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India - New Delhi, India

1998 - 2001

Bachelor of Commerce in Finance, Commerce

University of Allahabad - Allahabad, India

JANUARY 2004 - PRESENT

Chartered Accountant

ICAI

Finance

Financial Modeling, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Forecasting, Venture Funding, Working Capital Management, Fundraising, Corporate Treasury, Revenue & Expense Projections, Budgeting, Financial Reporting, Growth Capital Raising, Debt Raises, Private Equity, Project Finance, DCF Valuation, Asset Valuation, Accounting, Taxation

Output Software

Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Excel

Industry Expertise

Retail & Wholesale, Venture Capital, Real Estate, Commercial Real Estate

Geographic Expertise

India, United Kingdom

Data & Analysis Software

Capital IQ

Other

Manufacturing Productivity Improvement, Consulting, DCF Modeling, Manufacturing, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), eCommerce, Business Models, SaaS, Pitch Deck Consultant, Business Planning, Strategic Planning & Execution, Turnaround, Internal Control, Term Sheets, Discounted Cash Flow Analysis, Sensitivity Analysis, Audits, Strategy, Treasury, Finance, Reporting, Modeling

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