Financial Controller (Family Office)

Financial Reporting & Oversight of External Accountants

• Supervise the outsourced back and middle office finance services by external accountants - reviewing bookkeeping, trial balances, management accounts and statutory accounts preparation, and holding providers to agreed standards and deadlines.
• Review and challenge external output rather than simply accepting it: interrogate balances, question treatment, and ensure the underlying detail supports the reported position.
• Deliver individual entity and consolidated reporting to the COO, bringing multiple entities, custodians, administrators and managers into a single, coherent view.
• Maintain the accounting policy framework, including treatment of investment valuations, consolidation, foreign currency and development costs.
• Own the balance sheet reconciliation process across all entities, ensuring positions agree to third-party records.

Cash Management & Treasury

• Own cash reporting and forecasting across all accounts, currencies and entities, giving the COO a clear forward view of liquidity.
• Manage day-to-day treasury, banking operations, payment controls and authorisation workflows.
• Track debt facilities, covenant positions, LTVs on Lombard facilities and interest costs across investment and development structures.
• Support the COO in managing relationships with banks, custodians and company administrators.

Audit & Tax

• Assist the outsourced accounting services provider with the annual audit process, end to end across the relevant entities, acting as principal point of contact for external auditors.
• Coordinate UK corporate tax compliance and reporting in partnership with external advisers, including VAT returns or offshore reporting obligations.
• Coordinate personal tax return preparation and filing for the principal and connected individuals, working closely with external tax advisers and maintaining absolute discretion.
• Maintain the records and supporting information required to substantiate filings across all jurisdictions.

Controls, Process & Systems

• Design, document and enforce internal financial controls and standard operating procedures - delegation of authority, segregation of duties, payment approval and record retention.
• Act as in-house owner of the accounting and reporting systems, as well as contributing to the selection and implementation of tools that support consolidated reporting.
• Replace manual and spreadsheet-dependent processes with automated, controlled workflows, including the application of new technologies

Ad hoc

• Maintain project-level records and budgets for real estate development, including capitalised costs, drawdowns against facilities and JV partner positions.
• Over time, take on financial reporting and risk analysis of the financial product portfolio — performance, exposure, concentration, liquidity and cost — to support the COO and owner in decision-making.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• Fully qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA or equivalent) with approximately 10 years of experience
• Experience gained within financial services: family office, asset management, hedge fund, private equity, fund administration or a comparable buyside environment.
• Experience to work independently and largely autonomously
• Demonstrable experience of managing and reviewing the work of external accountants or outsourced providers, with the confidence to challenge what is presented.
• Ownership of an audit process, and coordination of corporate tax compliance with external advisers; exposure to personal tax matters is an advantage.