Dark Horse CPAs

What Dark Horse CPAs does

Dark Horse CPAs is a fully virtual, cloud-based accounting, tax, and advisory firm headquartered in San Diego, serving small businesses and high-net-worth individuals across more than 50 U.S. markets. The firm was co-founded by Chase Birky (CEO) and Max Fritz (COO), with Justin Kurn as Chief Revenue Officer and Chris Davis as Chief Technology Officer, and operates with a distributed workforce of 101–250 employees organized around a network of Principals and Associate Principals. Its core services span Tax Strategy, Tax Compliance and Preparation, R&D Tax Credit, Bookkeeping, Outsourced Accounting, Fractional CFO, and Business Valuation for business clients, plus Personal Tax Advisory, Cost Segregation, Foreign Tax Compliance, and Estate and Trust Compliance for individuals. Specialized wholly-owned sub-brands — Dark Horse Cannabis CPAs, Dark Horse Private Wealth, Dark Horse Cowork, and an Esports and Content Creators CPA practice — extend the firm into vertical niches and adjacent services.

The firm runs entirely on cloud-based, paperless infrastructure with SOC 2 Type II compliance and integrates with third-party platforms including QuickBooks, Xero, Gusto, and Mindbody. The Dark Horse Accelerator Program functions as an internal training and practice-ownership pipeline that converts client-service CPAs into revenue-bearing Principals within the firm. Dark Horse generates revenue primarily through recurring subscription-style engagements (monthly bookkeeping, fractional CFO, wealth advisory) combined with project-based fees (tax preparation, valuations, R&D credit studies), with pricing customized through a 9-step online consultation questionnaire rather than published rate cards. The firm is bootstrapped and privately held, with no disclosed institutional investment, and has expanded in part through tuck-in acquisitions including the 2023 merger with McLain, Hill, Rugg & Associates.

Name

Dark Horse CPAs

Legal name

Dark Horse CPAs

Website

https://darkhorse.cpa

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Dark Horse CPAs is a fully virtual, cloud-based accounting, tax, and advisory firm serving small businesses and high-net-worth individuals across 50+ U.S. markets through a national network of Principals, with sub-brands in cannabis, private wealth, and esports.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tax Services: Tax preparation, planning, and strategy services for businesses and individuals, including business tax strategy, R&D tax credits, cryptocurrency taxation, multi-state filings, and international tax compliance.
2. Accounting & Bookkeeping Services: Outsourced accounting, bookkeeping, and financial reporting services. Includes monthly close management, KPI dashboards, cash flow analysis, and forecasting.
3. Fractional CFO Services: Strategic finance leadership providing CFO-level advisory including budgeting, forecasting, board-level reporting, and financial strategy without full-time hire costs.
4. Private Wealth Management: Integrated wealth management services balancing tax efficiency with investment performance, including financial planning, retirement planning, and investment strategy.
5. Business Valuations: Business valuation services for exit planning, succession planning, and strategic decision-making.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Dark Horse CPAs is a fully virtual, cloud-based CPA firm delivering tax strategy, tax compliance, bookkeeping, outsourced accounting, fractional CFO, and business valuation services to small businesses across the United States, alongside personal tax, estate, wealth management, and specialized services such as cannabis and esports CPA support. The firm operates through dedicated CPA teams matched to clients via a 9-step consultation intake, with no physical offices and a national footprint across 50+ U.S. locations.

Product overview

Dark Horse CPAs is a full-service accounting, tax, business advisory, and wealth management firm offering a unified platform of services for small businesses, high-net-worth individuals, and specialized industries across the United States. The core portfolio comprises Tax Strategy, Tax Compliance & Preparation, R&D Tax Credit, Bookkeeping, Outsourced Accounting, Fractional CFO, Business Valuations, and Cybersecurity Advisory for business clients; and Cost Segregation, Foreign Tax Compliance, and Estate & Trust Compliance for personal clients. These are supplemented by two sub-brands — Dark Horse Cannabis CPAs and the Esports & Content Creators CPA — addressing niche vertical industries. The firm's Private Wealth Management sub-brand, accessible through pw.darkhorse.cpa, provides integrated investment advisory that balances tax efficiency with financial planning, including retirement, equity compensation, and real estate strategy. The Dark Horse Accelerator Program is an internal enablement track that trains and promotes CPAs to principal-level practice ownership within the firm. The offering is entirely cloud-based, paperless, and virtual-first, leveraging QuickBooks, Xero, and Gusto integrations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Dark Horse Cannabis CPAs: Specialized accounting and tax services for cannabis industry businesses
• Dark Horse Private Wealth
• Dark Horse Cowork
• Dark Horse Accelerator Program

Products and services

• Business Tax Strategy
• Business Tax Compliance & Preparation
• R&D Tax Credit
• Bookkeeping
• Outsourced Accounting
• Fractional CFO
• Business Valuations
• Cybersecurity Advisory
• Personal Tax Strategy
• Cost Segregation
• Foreign Tax Compliance & Preparation
• Estate & Trust Compliance & Preparation
• Private Wealth Management
• Dark Horse Cannabis CPAs
• Esports & Content Creators CPA

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% Net Promoter Score vs. 38-39% industry average
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• QuickBookscoreTechnology or IntegrationQuickBooks integration for accounting and bookkeeping services. The firm utilizes QuickBooks as a primary accounting platform for client bookkeeping, financial reporting, and CFO advisory services.
• XerocoreTechnology or IntegrationXero cloud accounting software integration for client accounting services. The firm supports both QuickBooks and Xero platforms for client bookkeeping and financial management.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• FinancePal: FinancePal is a virtual accounting and CFO services firm for SMBs, providing bookkeeping, tax, payroll, and advisory on a subscription basis — closely aligned with Dark Horse's offering suite and target customer profile.
• Bench (Employer.com): Bench is a virtual bookkeeping and accounting platform targeting SMBs with monthly bookkeeping, financial statements, and tax preparation — closely aligned with Dark Horse's recurring accounting service model and SMB focus.
• 1-800Accountant: 1-800Accountant is a virtual accounting and tax firm serving SMBs and individuals with subscription-based bookkeeping, tax, and advisory services — a near-direct comparator to Dark Horse's virtual-first CPA delivery model and target customer.
• Ignite Spot Accounting Services: Ignite Spot is a virtual accounting firm providing bookkeeping, controller, CFO, and tax services to SMBs — directly comparable to Dark Horse in service mix, virtual delivery model, and SMB target market.
• Xendoo: Xendoo is a cloud-based bookkeeping, accounting, and tax firm serving SMBs through a subscription model — directly comparable to Dark Horse's outsourced accounting and tax offerings in both product mix and customer profile.
• Pilot: Pilot provides outsourced bookkeeping, accounting, and fractional CFO services to startups and SMBs via a tech-enabled virtual delivery model — directly competing with Dark Horse's accounting and fractional CFO offerings for the SMB segment.

Emerging players

• Botkeeper: Botkeeper is an AI-enabled bookkeeping automation platform serving accounting firms and SMBs — competing at the lower end of Dark Horse's bookkeeping stack while potentially enabling automation of Dark Horse's own bookkeeping processes.
• GreenGrowth CPAs: GreenGrowth CPAs specializes in tax, accounting, and CFO services for the cannabis industry — directly comparable to Dark Horse's Dark Horse Cannabis CPAs sub-brand in both vertical and service offering.

Broad incumbents

• BDO USA: BDO USA is a top-10 global accounting and advisory firm offering tax, audit, and consulting — represents the broader incumbent competition Dark Horse faces when serving larger SMBs and growth-stage clients seeking audit-grade services.
• CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA): CLA is a top-10 U.S. accounting firm serving SMBs, individuals, and advisory clients — overlapping with Dark Horse's SMB tax and advisory space but as a broader, traditional full-service firm with deeper geographic density.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/horsecpa
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@DarkHorseCPAs
• Facebookfacebook.com/DarkHorseCPA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/darkhorsecpa

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dark Horse CPAs