Voland Partners accelerates growth of an accounting innovator –Balanco Accounting is a rarity among growth firms
Voland Partners, which invests in technology growth companies, was interested in a company offering corporate financial management services, which is rare in Finland.
Founded in 2015, Balanco has grown into a growth company with 140 employees in less than ten years. The company's turnover is expected to reach around €11 million this year.
The new growth phase aims to more than triple turnover to €35 million over the next four years.
With the capital investment, Balanco will accelerate its own technology development and expand into new markets.
"We want to make technology development a key factor in Balanco's differentiation and competitive advantage. Our team brings strong expertise to the table to quickly bring the benefits of technology and the company's own product development to support growth," says Samuli Siljamäki, founding partner of Voland Partners.
Balanco develops its own technology for accounting automation and offers its employees opportunities to participate in the development of software robotics, for example.
Increased automation will free up staff time for services and also enable organic growth, which will be challenging to achieve from traditional accounting in the future.
Artificial intelligence processes a significant part of the purchase invoices processed by Balanco.
Technological developments also offer new career prospects and job opportunities for company employees alongside traditional financial management tasks.
"We are developing our own software robotics to automate the processing of tax data, for example. Some of our accountants are already focusing almost entirely on training software robots," says Mikko Marttunen, founding partner and CEO of Balanco.
Balanco is ready for a new phase of growth from the private equity investor's standpoint
"Balanco is an exceptionally well-managed growth company that has been built like a large company from the outset. The company is already structurally ready for a new phase of growth and has a clear expansion strategy. This is quite rare in Finland," Siljamäki estimates.
"It's rare to come across a company of this size that takes care of responsible business, measuring and reporting to such a high standard. Balanco is an excellent example of the importance of ESG issues in enabling growth," says Veera Sylvius, founding partner and CEO of Voland Partners.
International growth
In addition to technology development, acquisitions and service business development will drive Balanco's growth over the next four years.
The company has already gained a solid position in the Swedish and Norwegian markets in addition to Finland. In Sweden and Norway, the company has expanded its market share through acquisitions.
In Sweden alone, Balanco purchased new revenue for over €4 million in 2021.
"In Sweden and Norway, we have grown to a size where we can also enter the organic growth phase. Denmark is the next natural market to which we will expand through acquisitions. Beyond the Nordic countries, the broader European market also holds interesting opportunities. Our growth targets in Finland are tough, and we don't rule out acquisitions here either," Marttunen says.
Clients and employees as a mission
Since its creation, Balanco has been at the forefront of change in the accounting industry. The company has transformed its traditionally rigid process-focused accountancy work into something more meaningful for employees and clients.
According to Marttunen, the challenging employer image often associated with accounting firms has been created by the rigid practices typical of the industry, where clients and employees are forced to adapt to processes.
In recent years, accountancy work has not attracted young people training for the profession or those moving into it, but a more positive trend can be seen.
"Traditional accounting work has not been seen as attractive, as employees balk at machine-like, conveyor belt work. We aim to make the sector more attractive by renewing job profiles and investing in staff welfare and training. Technology development also plays an important role in this. Work pays off. We receive dozens of job applications every year, from young people as well as those who are new to the industry," Marttunen says.
The pioneering work that shook the industry was recognised in 2021 when pension company Ilmarinen awarded Balanco with the Employer of the Future award.
Balanco Accounting Oy
What it does: Accounting services
Founded: 2015
CEO: Mikko Marttunen
Net sales: €9.1 million (2022)
Net profit: €450,000 (2022)
Employees: 140
Additional information and interviews:
Mikko Marttunen, CEO, Balanco Accounting Oy
Phone: +35840 844 9565
Email: mikko.marttunen@balanco.fi
Samuli Siljamäki, Founding Partner, Voland Partners Oy
Phone: +35840 709 2848
Email: samuli.siljamäki@voland.fi
Balanco Accounting is a service-oriented accounting pioneer driven by an uncompromising service attitude and open-mindedness to develop the accounting services to better meet the real financial management needs of client companies. Balanco's offices are located in Helsinki, Vantaa, Lahti, Oulu, Stockholm, Sollentuna, Södertelje, and Visby, as well as Oslo and Fredrikstad. www.balanco.fi
Voland Partners is a minority investor specialising in the development of technology companies. Voland helps ambitious entrepreneurs to succeed by developing their businesses systematically and strategically, and by working together to create success stories that benefit society as a whole. The Voland Technology Growth Fund I adheres with Article 8+ of the SFDR on responsible investment. The fund's target size is €80 million. www.voland.fi