Technical Accounting Advisory
Get the hard accounting questions answered and documented before your auditor or the SEC staff asks them.
Online service across all 50 states
What this service is
Some transactions don't have an obvious accounting answer: a convertible note with several conversion features, a customer contract with bundled services, an option grant shortly before a financing, an acquisition with an earnout. We research the guidance, work through the alternatives with you, and write a memo that states the facts, the guidance applied, the alternatives considered, and the conclusion. Management makes the final decision; the memo gives your auditor and reviewers a clear basis for it.
Forms & documents involved
What we actually do
Revenue recognition (ASC 606)
Performance obligations, variable consideration, principal versus agent, and contract costs.
Stock compensation (ASC 718) and cheap stock
Grant-date fair value support, modifications, and the value history before an IPO.
Debt and equity instruments (ASC 470, 480, 815)
Convertible notes, SAFEs, warrants, preferred stock, and embedded derivatives.
Leases (ASC 842)
Lease identification, classification, and transition.
Business combinations (ASC 805)
Purchase price allocation support, earnouts, and acquired-business financial statements.
Public-company presentation
Earnings per share (ASC 260), segment reporting (ASC 280), and reversing private company accounting alternatives.
Issues that come up before an IPO
Cheap stock
Grants made in the year or so before an IPO at values well below the offering range often draw SEC staff questions. The documentation should explain what changed the company's value and when.
Instruments that convert at the IPO
Convertible notes, SAFEs, warrants, and preferred stock often convert or change at listing. Classification, measurement, and the conversion entries need to be settled in advance.
Private company alternatives
Elections available to private companies, such as certain goodwill and hedging alternatives, generally can't be used in an SEC filing and have to be reversed in the historical periods.
New disclosure requirements
Public-company rules add segment expense disclosures, earnings per share, and expanded income tax disclosures that private financial statements often omit.
Restatements
When prior-period errors surface during conversion, we help quantify them, determine how they are corrected, and document the conclusion.
How pricing works
Pre-IPO work is scoped company by company. Send your listing window, current reporting basis, and the work you need through the request form. We review those details and provide a written scope and quote before work begins.
What we scope and quote
- Technical Accounting MemosWritten accounting positions documented to audit standard.
- Technical Accounting RetainerOn-call support for questions as they arise.
What You Get
Accounting position memos
The facts, guidance applied, alternatives considered, and conclusion for each significant judgment.
Entries and footnotes
Proposed journal entries, supporting calculations, and draft footnote language for the affected areas.
Auditor discussion
We walk your auditor through the position and update the memo for their questions.
- Accounting memo for each significant judgment
- Proposed journal entries and supporting calculations
- Draft footnote language for the affected areas
- Summary of open questions for your auditor
When this service may fit
- Your auditor has raised an accounting question your team can't resolve internally
- You have convertible notes, SAFEs, warrants, or preferred stock that will convert at listing
- You are making an acquisition before or after the IPO
- Option grants were made close to a financing or a planned offering
How It Works
Facts and documents
Contracts, agreements, and the transaction timeline.
Research and alternatives
Guidance applied and alternatives evaluated with management.
Memo and entries
Draft memo, proposed entries, and footnote language.
Auditor discussion
We walk your auditor through the position and update the memo for their questions.
Your Role
Provide complete agreements and facts, decide the accounting position, and approve the final memo.
Service Scope
The independent audit opinion is issued by your PCAOB-registered auditor, not by OICPA. Readiness support is not an audit, securities legal advice, underwriting, or assurance that a listing will occur.
Start Technical Accounting Advisory online
Choose the closest scope and send your request online. We’ll confirm the final work and fee in writing before anything begins.
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