As an Innovation Consultancy, we are aware of all the challenges our clients face concerning managing their finances. But what about the challenges accounting firms may face when encountered with their clients’ sources of finances? We decided to investigate deeper and consider what are the ‘pain points’ accounting firms face when managing clients’ innovative sources of finance.

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One of the key characteristics of start-ups and SME’s is the sourcing of funding through innovative means such as R&D tax credits and grant funding. Forecasting for R&D tax credits can often be challenging because of the reliance on R&D activities for a claim to be made. A company’s R&D may fluctuate yearly, therefore making it difficult to forecast how much a claim may be worth a couple of years in advance.

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As a company that completes R&D tax credit claims for clients, we are aware of the challenges faced when completing a claim including; understanding how much a company is eligible to claim. Outside of experienced R&D Tax Credit Consultants, there are limited offerings that are capable of understanding and calculating the optimum eligible amount that can be claimed.

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When applying for grant funding as thorough as Innovate UK, stringent specifications are in place to ensure applications meet the set criteria. This makes it difficult for some accounting firms to advise clients on which grants they can apply for and how much they could claim from grants for a project. Furthermore, helping clients identify project partners can be time-consuming and challenging for accounting firms and their clients.

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Through our research, we are aware of the challenges faced between accountancy teams and innovation teams. We understand the difficulties in forecasting the potential returns of innovation, and innovative sources of finance like R&D Tax Credits. But we feel we have a solution that will make it easier for accountancy and innovation to collaborate effectively, bridging the gap between the two teams.

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Inventya, Kapitalise and Telesto are partners on an Innovate UK funded project to transform accountancy. INNOVACC, our AI-Powered solution, will help bridge the gap between innovation and accountancy. Through the platform, users will be able to do a variety of innovation and financial planning/forecasting. This includes planning for innovative projects. Users will be able to identify the likelihood of eligibility for R&D Tax Credits and potential grant funding.

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Inventya and Kapitalise have a specialisation in completing R&D Tax Credit claims. The years of experience from completing claims has helped both partners gain an understanding of the frustration’s clients face throughout the R&D Tax Credit process, including when attempting to complete by themselves, with accountants, or other companies who complete claims. Our solution will provide an invaluable tool to Financial Directors, Innovators, Accountants, and others who want to optimise their R&D Tax Credit’s whilst also reducing the time consumed calculating potential claim value or even identifying whether they are eligible.

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The pains and frustrations our clients face have helped us focus on creating a meaningful solution for the variety of stakeholders who will value from our platform, including Accountants. We’ll soon be looking for our first users of the platform and are eager to get some Accountants on board to demonstrate the capabilities, benefits and value the platform offers.