Vikas is available for hire
Hire VikasVikas Agrawal
Verified Expert in Finance
Finance Expert
Location
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Toptal Member Since
October 5, 2016
Vikas has independently managed a Citi bank portfolio of over $300 million for the entire East India market. He enjoys freelancing as it provides a unique opportunity to work with a wider variety of clients, businesses, and company maturities. Vikas has significant experience in the banking and financial services sector. During his stint with Citi & S&P, he worked extensively with senior executives/CFOs of high growth companies/startups.
Career Highlights
CFO | Finance Head
Floship (Hong Kong-based eCommerce startup)
Portfolio Risk Manager
Citi Bank
Financial and Business Analyst
CRISIL (Standard & Poor's Company)
Education Highlights
Financial Risk Manager (FRM) Certification
Global Association of Risk Management (GARP)
Chartered Accountant Certification
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India
Case Studies
Industry Expertise
Other Expertise
Work Experience
CFO | Finance Head
2016 - 2021
Floship (Hong Kong-based eCommerce startup)
- Ensured an immediate turnaround in the cash flow cycle with an over 150% improvement in the month-on-month cash flow cycle.
- Prepared a credit control mechanism to check the creditworthiness of around 100 customers and categorize them into low, high, and medium risk.
- Developed strategic plans to prepare a reporting system—showed improvement in the cash flow cycle and setting up credit limits and onboarding criteria for the customer.
- Worked directly with the senior management and the legal team to amicably resolve long outstanding and non-collectible accounts, including debtor disputes.
- Integrated the finance department with the operational and technical team for monitoring overdue invoices, customer stock holdings, and daily order execution.
- Fast-tracked a turnaround in the cash flow situation, receivable cycle, and overall financial flexibility/liquidity of the company.
Focus areas: Financial Management, Accounts, Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Cash Flow Management, Working Capital Management, Debtor & Creditor Management
Content Head for the CFA Prep Provider
2015 - 2016
R3M3MB3R.IT
- Created CFA educational material for the startup site.
- Tested the functionalities of the website and app; providing feedback to the tech team.
- Drove product pricing initiatives for the online educational offering into Gold, Silver, and Bronze levels of service.
- Provided actionable insights on business performance and the effectiveness of the marketing strategy to the founder of the company.
Focus areas: CFA Level 1
Portfolio Risk Manager
2015 - 2016
Citi Bank
- Managed the credit and risk approving construct within the commercial banking division. Independently managed a US$300 million portfolio for the entire region.
- Assessed client performance based on the business, management, and financial profile involving in-depth analysis of the financial and business models of customers. Developed a company-specific financial model and ratio analysis in various scenarios.
- Managed over 35 clients and adjudging their business and financial performance through regular client interaction on changes in economic, political, and industry dynamics.
- Handled strategically stressed accounts within the portfolio through concurrent highlights to the senior risk management team about the latest happenings on business and risk performances of these clients.
- Executed actionable items to ensure minimal cost of credit to the organization.
Focus areas: Commercial Banking, Credit Control, Risk Management, Mortgages, Credit Analysis, Underwriting, Lending, Financial Risk Assessment
Financial and Business Analyst
2010 - 2015
CRISIL (Standard & Poor's Company)
- Drove the process of credit ratings (directly rated over US$1 billion of debt/financial products) and coordinated with clients at a senior level.
- Conducted in-depth analysis of companies using an economy-industry-company approach so as to analyze the business and financial risk of the company.
- Monitored the performance of a team of four to ensure efficiency in the operations and meeting of individual and group targets.
- Coached and developed other analysts through knowledge transfer, best practice sharing, and training sessions, as appropriate.
- Prepared credit reports and rationales entailing the entire gamut of the information-sectorial presence of a company, its existing and future financial positions, operating efficiencies, management track record, and peer comparison.
- Represented CRISIL while meeting the top management of a company to get insights into the company's operations and business model.
- Projected the future financial position of the company.
- Made presentations to the CRISIL’s rating committee.
Focus areas: Risk Management, Financial Modeling, Credit Ratings, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Financial Risk Assessment, Debtor & Creditor Management, Business Analysis
Audit and Accounts Executive
2006 - 2009
Lodha & Co. (BDO International Co.)
- Prepared, as an intern, the accounts books along with annual, half-year, and quarterly reporting.
- Performed accounting, bank reconciliation, cash flow management, budget/planning, and variance analysis.
- Set up a robust management information system (MIS) structure for performance monitoring and review of a business for clients.
Focus areas: Taxation, Budgeting, Financial Reporting, Audits, Accounting
Education
2016 - 2017
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) (Active Between 2016-2017) in Financial Analysis
CFA Institute - USA
2010 - 2010
Financial Risk Manager (FRM) Certification in Financial Risk Management
Global Association of Risk Management (GARP) - USA
2006 - 2009
Chartered Accountant Certification in Accounts, Tax, and Finance
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India - India
2003 - 2006
Bachelor's Degree in Commerce
Calcutta University - Kolkata, India
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