In the latest episode of What the Tech from Boast, we sat down with Raymond Fitzpatrick, CEO and founder of Profitual, a New Brunswick-based company on a mission to democratize financial intelligence for SMEs.
Ray is an experienced finance leader and former VC who saw a critical gap in the market: Startup founders determined to disrupt their industries often lack the financial expertise needed to navigate growth and make confident decisions as they scale.
Profitual was born from a simple but powerful observation—the playing field isn’t level for founders without financial backgrounds. Ray and his team are executing on a vision to provide innovative AI-powered financial tools that transform complex data into clear, actionable insights, allowing founders to make the kind of informed decisions that can mean the difference between thriving and merely surviving.
The Entrepreneurial Foundation
Ray’s journey into entrepreneurship started early, shaped by watching his parents run their own small businesses. “My parents owned small businesses of their own, so I used to go sit there and watch and see my mom and my dad doing the accounting books at the table,” Ray recalls. “So long, long history, and started from a very early age in entrepreneurship.”
That early exposure gave Ray something invaluable: an understanding that entrepreneurship isn’t just about having a great idea—it’s about the day-to-day realities of managing finances, making payroll, and keeping the books straight. It’s unglamorous work, but it’s foundational.
His formal entry into the tech and startup world came through venture capital, where he worked as a pre-seed venture capitalist for a fund based in Saint John, New Brunswick. This experience gave him a front-row seat to the challenges founders face, particularly around financial management and strategic decision-making.
The Problem: Financial Intelligence Gaps
Working in VC, Ray identified a pattern: many brilliant founders with innovative products struggled not because their technology wasn’t viable, but because they lacked financial expertise. They didn’t have the tools or knowledge to properly forecast cash runway, understand unit economics, or make data-driven decisions about when to hire, when to raise capital, or how to optimize burn rate.
Traditional solutions existed, but they weren’t built for early-stage founders. Enterprise financial planning tools were too expensive and complex. Spreadsheets were error-prone and didn’t scale. And hiring a full-time CFO wasn’t realistic for pre-seed or seed-stage companies.
Profitual emerged as Ray’s answer to this gap: AI-powered financial tools specifically designed for startup founders who need CFO-level insights without the CFO-level price tag.
What Makes Profitual Different
Profitual provides financial intelligence tools that transform complex financial data into actionable insights. The platform helps founders:
- Understand their financial position in real-time – No more waiting for month-end reports to know if you’re on track
- Make confident decisions about scaling – Should you hire that next engineer? Can you afford to expand to a new market?
- Forecast runway accurately – Know exactly how long your capital will last under different scenarios
- Communicate effectively with investors – Present financial data in the language VCs and board members expect
The AI component isn’t just about automation—it’s about making sophisticated financial analysis accessible to founders who don’t have finance backgrounds. The system can identify patterns, flag potential issues, and suggest optimizations that might take a human CFO hours of analysis to uncover.
The Sports Startup Parallel
One particularly interesting part of the conversation focused on what Profitual is learning from working with Zach on sports startups. While Ray couldn’t share specific details, the sports vertical offers unique insights into how different types of startups approach growth and financial management.
Sports-related startups often have distinct seasonality patterns, complex revenue models (sponsorships, merchandise, ticket sales, media rights), and unique scaling challenges. Building financial intelligence tools that can adapt to these nuances while remaining accessible to non-finance founders is exactly the kind of challenge that makes Profitual’s approach valuable.
The Boast Connection: Non-Dilutive Funding Strategy
Profitual leverages SR&ED tax credits as part of their funding strategy—a smart move for any Canadian tech company doing genuine R&D work.
For Profitual, the R&D is clear: they’re building AI-powered financial analysis tools that go beyond simple bookkeeping automation. They’re tackling genuine technological uncertainty around how to make sophisticated financial modeling accessible to non-experts, how to integrate multiple data sources into coherent insights, and how to build AI systems that can provide CFO-level strategic guidance.
This is exactly the kind of innovation that SR&ED was designed to support. And for early-stage companies like Profitual, maximizing non-dilutive funding through programs like SR&ED can significantly extend runway without giving up equity—crucial when you’re still finding product-market fit.
Ray’s background in VC gives him a sophisticated understanding of capital strategy. He knows that the best funding approach combines multiple sources: venture capital for growth, non-dilutive government programs like SR&ED for R&D costs, and strategic revenue generation. It’s about building a sustainable capital structure that supports long-term success, not just chasing the highest valuation.
The Mission: Leveling the Playing Field
At its core, Profitual’s mission is about democratization—making tools and insights that were previously only accessible to well-funded companies available to every founder who’s trying to build something meaningful.
“Profitual was born out of a desire to level the playing field for startup founders who were determined to disrupt their industries, but lack that financial expertise to navigate growth and make confident decisions as they scale.”
This philosophy resonates deeply with Boast’s own mission. Just as Profitual aims to give founders access to CFO-level financial intelligence, Boast aims to give companies access to the R&D tax credits they deserve without needing to become tax experts themselves. Both companies recognize that founders should focus on building great products, not becoming experts in adjacent disciplines.
What’s Next for Profitual
As Profitual continues to grow, the focus remains on refining their AI-powered tools and expanding their understanding of how different types of startups approach financial management. The work with sports startups is providing valuable insights, and the team continues to iterate based on real founder feedback.
The broader opportunity is enormous. Thousands of startup founders struggle with financial management, and many fail not because their product isn’t viable, but because they run out of cash before achieving profitability or raising their next round. If Profitual can help even a fraction of those founders make better financial decisions, the impact will be significant.
Key Takeaways for Founders
Financial intelligence isn’t optional – Understanding your unit economics, cash runway, and key financial metrics isn’t just about satisfying investors. It’s about making better strategic decisions every day.
AI can democratize expertise – Tools like Profitual show how AI can make sophisticated analysis accessible to non-experts. Look for similar opportunities in your own domain.
Non-dilutive funding matters – Programs like SR&ED can extend your runway significantly. Don’t leave government money on the table just because the process seems complex—that’s what partners like Boast are for.
Background shapes perspective – Ray’s early exposure to his parents’ businesses and his VC experience gave him unique insights into founder challenges. Your own background likely gives you similar unique perspectives—use them.
Listen to the Full Episode
Want to hear more about Ray’s journey from VC to founder, the specific challenges Profitual is solving, and insights from working with sports startups?
