ACE FMS

What ACE FMS does

ACE FMS is a California-based Financial Management Service (FMS) provider that serves participants in the state's Self Determination Program (SDP) for individuals with developmental disabilities. Founded by parents of children with special needs — including co-founders Peyman Dadmehr (CEO, attorney) and Sara Dadmehr (CFO, CPA) — the company was built around a direct critique of legacy FMS providers, specifically their manual, document-heavy onboarding and delayed reporting. ACE FMS delivers three service models — Bill Payer, Co-Employer, and Sole Employer — alongside a Transition Support offering that is fully funded by Regional Centers.

The company's core technology is a proprietary web-based platform called the ACE Portal. Notable technical features include a 2-minute digital signup (contrasted with the ~80-page PDF intake common among incumbents), a real-time budget and accounting dashboard with up-to-the-minute spend visibility, progress bars that surface the live status of every vendor, invoice, or purchase request, automated population of government forms, and multi-party live data access for clients, vendors, employees, and Independent Facilitators. The platform is offered under monthly billing tied to each client's certified SDP budget, which is generally capped at approximately $175,000.

ACE FMS operates exclusively within California and pursues a hybrid go-to-market: an inside-sales motion anchored on a free 15-minute consultation, paired with community-led referrals from Regional Centers, Independent Facilitators, and SDP orientation programs. Demand is further supported by content marketing, a newsletter, and active social profiles. The company is privately held and founder-controlled, with no disclosed external funding rounds.

Name

ACE FMS

Legal name

ACE Financial Management Services

Website

https://acefms.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ACE FMS is a California-based Financial Management Service provider serving participants in the state's Self Determination Program for individuals with developmental disabilities, offering a proprietary digital FMS platform and three service models via the ACE Portal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Management Services for Developmental Disabilities

NAICS

Professional Employer Organizations (56133), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Family Office Administration & Operations (Accounting, Reporting, Payroll) (FSAAADAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Disability & Leave Administration (STD/LTD/FMLA/Paid Leave) (HLAEALAM)

Keywords

• Financial management services
• Self determination program
• Developmental disability services
• Fiscal management service
• Vendor payment processing

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Monica

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. FMS Service Fees (SDP Program): Financial Management Services fees paid through the Self Determination Program budget. The Regional Center covers 100% of transition support service costs and these fees come from the participant's certified SDP budget rather than out-of-pocket. The company generally supports clients with budgets up to $175,000

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ACE FMS provides Financial Management Services to participants in California's Self Determination Program through its proprietary web-based ACE Portal. Clients choose between three service models — Bill Payer (vendor payment handling), Co-Employer (full employment administration including payroll and insurance), and Sole Employer (payroll and compliance while the client stays the employer of record) — and additionally receive Transition Support to help families enroll in SDP at no out-of-pocket cost.

Product overview

ACE FMS offers a unified proprietary Financial Management Service platform called ACE Portal for participants in California's Self Determination Program (SDP). The platform is offered alongside three distinct service models: Bill Payer (vendors are chosen and purchased by the client, with ACE handling payments), Co-Employer (ACE manages all employment matters including payroll and insurance), and Sole Employer (ACE handles payroll and compliance, but the client retains sole employer responsibility). Transition Support services are also provided to guide families through SDP enrollment. The platform features a 2-minute signup process, real-time budget tracking, live spending dashboards, automated progress bars for request status, and auto-fill capabilities for government forms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ACE Portal ACE FMS's proprietary web-based client portal providing SDP participants with real-time budget tracking, live spending data, progress bar tracking for requests (vendor additions, invoice payments, purchases), auto-filled government forms, and 2-minute digital signup. Designed for California Self Determination Program participants and their support teams (vendors, employees, Independent Facilitators).
• Bill Payer Service Service model where the SDP participant selects vendors and purchases goods and services, and ACE FMS handles all payments to those vendors on the participant's behalf.
• Co-Employer Service Service model where the SDP participant chooses their employees, compensation, and termination decisions, while ACE FMS handles all employment matters including payroll, insurance, and compliance.
• Sole Employer Service Service model where ACE FMS handles payroll and provider qualification verification along with employment law compliance, but the SDP participant remains the sole employer responsible for their own insurance coverage such as workers' compensation.
• Transition Support Service Expert guidance service from ACE FMS to help families navigate the transition into California's Self Determination Program, with the cost covered 100% by the Regional Center and not charged against the participant's spending budget.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2-minute signup process compared to approximately 80 pages of manual PDF documents required by other FMS companies
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Consumer Direct Care Network: National FMS and fiscal employer agent provider serving self-directed Medicaid programs across multiple states. Offers a comparable mix of bill payment, payroll, and budget management services for participants with disabilities and elderly care needs.
• Acumen Fiscal Agent: Fiscal employer agent providing FMS for state Medicaid self-direction programs. Operates in similar markets with comparable bill payer, co-employer, and sole employer service models serving individuals with disabilities.
• GT Independence: One of the largest Financial Management Service providers in the U.S. serving self-determination and consumer-directed Medicaid programs. Directly comparable to ACE FMS in providing bill payment, employer agent, and budget administration services to SDP-equivalent participants.
• Palco: Fiscal management services provider specializing in self-directed Medicaid programs including California's SDP. Offers comparable bill payment, payroll, and budget administration services to participants with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• Public Partnerships LLC (PPL): Large-scale fiscal employer agent providing FMS services for state Medicaid self-direction programs. Directly competes with ACE FMS in California and other states, serving similar populations with similar vendor payment and co-employment models.

Broad incumbents

• Justworks: Tech-enabled PEO offering payroll, benefits, and compliance services for small and mid-sized businesses. Operates the same co-employment framework as ACE FMS's Co-Employer service but targets commercial SMBs rather than SDP participants.
• ADP: Largest payroll and HR services provider in the U.S., including PEO offerings through ADP TotalSource. While not specializing in self-determination FMS, ADP has the scale and product breadth to enter adjacent payroll/employer-of-record markets that overlap with ACE FMS's Co-Employer service.
• Insperity: Established PEO providing co-employment, payroll, benefits administration, and HR compliance services. Comparable to ACE FMS's Co-Employer model in employer-of-record mechanics, though serving a broader commercial market rather than SDP specifically.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/official_acefms
• Facebookfacebook.com/officialacefms
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/acefms
• Instagraminstagram.com/acefms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 ACE FMS