ICAS’s top Scottish accountants under 35 in profile – Andrew Hope of Curo Compensation

Thirteen Scottish-based accountants have been named among ICAS’s 35 Chartered Accountants (CAs) under 35 for 2017.

For 13 days Scottish Financial News will be profiling each of the Scottish representatives.

Today we profile: Andrew Hope CA, 30, finance director at Curo Compensation, Edinburgh, who is nominated in the Entrepreneurship Category.

Mr Hope began his career in 2010 when he entered the graduate scheme at Deloitte in Edinburgh, joining the corporate audit team. During his four years at Deloitte where he achieved the CA qualification, he developed a sound understanding of finance and business through his roles with clients such as Johnston Press, BSkyB and a handful of small owner managed businesses. He was also lucky enough to travel, being seconded to New Zealand. He is currently Finance Director for Curo Compensation.

“Quest is a small corporate finance advisor in Edinburgh with a focus on fundraising and aiding exit events, mostly for high growth technology companies. Quest offered me an opportunity that was not achievable with Deloitte at that time – the ability to continue working with smaller businesses, providing advice throughout and ultimately on completion of corporate events. It also offered me opportunities to work inside these businesses on an interim basis.

My role with has expanded beyond simply being a corporate advisor. I actively participate in the management of companies (on an interim basis) as Finance Director, with my work aligned with the shareholders on achieving corporate events.

Previous to this I worked with pureLiFi, the Edinburgh University spin out who have wireless communications technology by providing Wi-Fi through light. On completing a significant investment for the company in 2014, I was then asked to go into the business as part time FD in order to implement a finance function, governance and steer the company through to its next investment.

I actively managed the business as part of the management team while maintaining a corporate advisor role, culminating in July 2015 when the business brought in over £6m of new equity investment from Temasek (the Singapore Sovereign Wealth Fund) and Scottish Angel Investors. More recently taken on the FD role with Curo Compensation, an Edinburgh and London based software company who provide best-in-class annual review and HR software to enterprise clients worldwide.

The business required a new FD at the turn of the year and my role has been to get under the skin of the business, implement and manage a new working relationship with an outsourced finance function and support the business through an equity investment process.

My involvement will continue post completion of this new investment where my focus is on supporting the business achieve its growth strategy. Both roles have been similar in some aspects. Both required the ability to steer the company through transactions and provide sound financial governance, allowing the business to achieving its strategic aims.

However both roles are poles apart as the companies being at different stages of their life cycle. pureLiFi was a very early stage university spin out raising its first tranches of private equity and focussed on technology development. Curo on the other hand is a well-established and revenue generating business.

I chose corporate finance as my career path as it allows me to work with some of the best entrepreneurs and exciting high growth companies in Scotland. The opportunities beyond this are endless. The fact I currently get to work inside these businesses, face new challenges on a daily basis and have a positive impact is extremely rewarding.

The CA qualification has been fundamental in allowing me to achieve my career to date. The CA qualification and the training ground from Deloitte has given me a solid financial understanding which now allows me to advise and work with these exciting high growth companies. I now look to build on these foundations and continue to pursue new opportunities as my career develops.”