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Akshay Shrimanker, CPA, is the founder of ShayCPA, a New York-based firm specializing in venture-backed startups. Born in London, Akshay moved to the US at 15, carrying a deep-rooted interest in business from his family’s import-export trade. Today, his firm supports high-growth and VC-backed companies through every stage from pre-seed to late stages, often through exit.
The Language of Business
Nick Levine: What convinced you that finance was your calling, and what finally pushed you to become a CPA?
Akshay Shrimanker: I come from a family business background, predominantly in importing and exporting. The family always looked up to the CPA accountant who supported the business. When I moved over to the US, I started taking business and accounting classes. It grew from there and eventually led me to earn my Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting at Baruch College. Accounting is like the language of business. At the same time, it’s a bit of a safer profession, so I combined the risk of business with the safety of starting off on my own.
Nick Levine: With the family business, did you put those skills to the test? Did you get involved?
Akshay Shrimanker: Unfortunately, the family business folded during that time. But my early memories were growing up and seeing my father and uncles all with these home offices back in the ’80s. They used to have old technology like telexes and the first Macintosh computer, and I remember them walking into banks to make payments and deposit cash. Those are my earliest memories.
From the Garment District to Edutainment
Nick Levine: Can you give me an overview of your career and the roles that prepared you for startup accounting?
Akshay Shrimanker: I worked at a small accounting firm, Irvings Roth & Rubin, in the Garment District here in New York City. I had a really great experience working with entrepreneurs, many of whom came from immigrant families, and understanding how they built wealth. Parallel to that, some friends and I started an indie music record label called Network Edutainment Group. That side quest actually helped me a lot because it was like a bridge. It was a startup business where I handled the bookkeeping, tax filings, and administration myself.
The Blueprint for ShayCPA
Nick Levine: What was the specific catalyst for founding ShayCPA, and how would you describe your unique specialism?
Akshay Shrimanker: In 2009, when the iPhone App Store launched, New York began building a tech ecosystem through public-private partnerships. Some connections I made in the music scene led to building apps and getting into tech incubators. When I visited, I saw founders and their early teams who needed help with bookkeeping or taxes. I started moonlighting while working as a staff accountant at a public television station. By 2013, I decided to take the leap to do it full-time. Our sweet spot is between seed and Series B/C, where companies need back-office support as they grow.
Nick Levine: Did the rise of cloud tools make starting the practice relatively cheap?
Akshay Shrimanker: Yes. There was a transition from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online around 2012-2013. That, along with a technology connector for financial services, was a big game changer. Suddenly, you had bank transactions feeding in, which helped automate bookkeeping. I could do the work a lot quicker. It allowed me to build the practice on nights and weekends while working my regular nine-to-five.
Real-Time Runway
Nick Levine: In keeping with the theme of this series, do you have an example of a financial process you’ve automated that has leveraged real benefits?
Akshay Shrimanker: The biggest piece of automation we’ve seen is the evolution of the month-end close. We use tools on top of QuickBooks that have automation and AI features that can identify prepaid expenses and accruals that need to be spread out. The one we use has a two-way sync, so you don’t have to do the work twice. This can significantly shorten the time a staff accountant spends reviewing a transaction. It moves accounting from being a backward-looking function to a real-time pulse.
Nick Levine: Does that mean you are closing the books quicker? What are the specific benefits for founders?
Akshay Shrimanker: It’s tremendous. In the past, something that would have taken 30 days is now almost in real-time. Founders and finance teams have more information to make decisions on cash, runway, and burn by day three, rather than looking far back into the past. It speeds up investor reporting for VC-backed companies, giving them a level of transparency that business owners of the past never had.
Advice for the Next Generation
Nick Levine: For those starting out now, what are the most important skills they should develop to become a finance leader?
Akshay Shrimanker: It doesn’t matter how much of a math whiz you are if you can’t think a week in advance. I’m looking for people with organizational skills; people who can think a little bit ahead of the present moment. I always tell young professionals to take out their calendars on a Sunday night and write down what the next five days look like for them. You can build your career brick by brick, but you need that basic calendar management first.
Nick Levine: Is that because in client work, there are so many deadlines you cannot miss?
Akshay Shrimanker: Exactly. You can’t be making doctors’ appointments in the middle of a deadline. It was an adjustment for me, too, as a young professional. A few times, I was close to missing key meetings or cutting it close. It’s more about work ethic and organizational skills than just technology skills. If you have those habits, the rest of the finance career path becomes much easier to navigate.
Akshay’s journey to building ShayCPA into a tech ecosystem staple highlights the resilience required to scale. If you’ve enjoyed learning how he helps venture-backed startups navigate their real-time runway, you can explore the full Next Gen Finance Leaders series below.
