☕ GOOD MORNING, CFO
The CFO’s 90-Second Advantage: Your week’s first move, not just your first read.
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🧭 HEADLINES & TAKEAWAYS
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1. M&A Stalls, But Windows Open Fast
EY and PwC both say dealmaking slowed as rates, policy shifts, and election jitters make investors twitchy.
CFO Play: Keep your data room ready. When valuations dip, cash-rich buyers win.
Metric Watch: Global deal volume down ~18% YoY.
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2. Main Street Confidence Slips Again
NFIB small-business optimism index dropped to 98.8, first fall in three months. Supply chain headaches and inflation fears top the list.
CFO Play: Watch client liquidity, delayed payments could hit receivables next.
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3. EU Just Gutted ESG Rules
Lawmakers raised the reporting threshold for the CSRD to 1,000 employees and CSDDD to 5,000, cutting compliance coverage by up to 90%.
CFO Play: Re-scope your ESG program. Less red tape, but investor pressure remains.
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4. Deloitte’s AI Faceplant
Australia’s government forced Deloitte to refund part of a $290K report after finding AI-generated errors.
CFO Play: AI ≠ autopilot. Add human QA before anything hits a regulator’s desk.
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5. Okta Bets on AI Identity Agents
Okta rolled out an AI product to secure “nonhuman identities”: think bots and agents, not employees.
CFO Play: Add digital agent governance to your 2026 audit checklist.
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6. CFO Turnover + Pay Trends
Robert Half’s 2026 Salary Guide: mid-range CFO pay = $269K, top = $321K.
Turnover’s rising as boards chase “operator-strategists.”
CFO Play: Benchmark comp early and lock retention bonuses before Q1 reshuffles.
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7. Liquid Death Hires PepsiCo Vet as CFO
Ricky Khetarpaul joins the cult beverage brand ahead of its push into the $23B energy drink market.
CFO Play: Watch for more DTC-to-C-suite crossovers; creative finance is the new corporate.
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CFO METRIC OF THE WEEK
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CFO Tenure: 3.5 years (down from 4.1 in 2023). Shorter tenures mean faster cycles of risk, onboarding, and culture reset.
CFO Play: Document strategy early. Most CFOs don’t outlast their first roadmap.
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⚒️ TOOL OF THE WEEK
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Terzo AI financial intelligence for contract data. Pulls insights from invoices, vendor terms, and agreements in real time.
Why it matters: Turns “dark data” into spend visibility that CFOs can actually use.
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SPOTLIGHT
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AvidXchange | Smarter AP for Uncertain Times
Mid-market finance pros say AP automation is their biggest stress reducer and resilience driver for 2026.
CFO Lesson: Manual AP = margin erosion. Upgrade or watch your cycle stretch.
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