Capital, With Counsel

When a growing firm needs capital, its most trusted relationship — the accountant or adviser who knows the business — is precisely the one the funding industry cuts out. Hand the client to a broker and you lose the relationship; gather data for lenders and you work unpaid hours.

The founder story

Presto was born inside an accounting firm, from exactly that frustration. Its founders watched relationships and revenue leak away with every referral, and drew the contrarian conclusion: don't remove the adviser — arm them. The platform they built keeps trusted advisers at the centre of the funding process, with AI surfacing opportunities and automation clearing the admin that once buried them.

Innovation & technology

A shared workspace replaces email threads and static attachments with real-time data and automated workflows. Machine learning combs a client's financial data and regulatory history, surfacing the most appropriate funding options and flagging documentation gaps. Built for regulated markets on Microsoft Azure in Australia with encryption at rest and in transit, two-factor authentication, Zero Trust architecture and minimal data capture.

Business impact

The commercial model is a statement of alignment. No subscription fees. Presto earns a 30 percent share of the lender's commission only when a deal closes; originators keep 70 percent, and can bill their own professional services besides. The platform is paid for outcomes, so it optimises for quality matches, not volume.

Editorial opinion

Fintech's decade-long war on intermediaries missed a truth Presto grasped from inside an accounting firm: some intermediaries are the product. Trust does not disintermediate. Platforms that arm advisers, rather than replace them, inherit relationships that no algorithm can originate.

“Human advice, enhanced — never replaced — by technology.”