dnA Consulting: Reinventing Business Finance for a Digital Economy

As tax administration turns digital, GST compliance matures and regulators deploy advanced analytics, expectations of the finance function have changed permanently.

Boards want continuous assurance, not year-end reviews. Promoters and CEOs want live visibility, not reports that arrive weeks late. And global corporations building capability centres in India want partners who can execute without compromising governance.

In this landscape, dnA Consulting has built a distinctive position. Since 2017, the firm has integrated internal audit, statutory audit, taxation, advisory, assurance and CFO services into a single real-time financial management framework, working alongside boards through the year to strengthen controls and turn finance into a strategic enabler of growth.

From Founding Vision to Enterprise Scale

dnA Consulting was founded by Deepak Pokharna, a US CPA and FCCA, together with Chartered Accountant Ashwini Lakshmikanthan, with one objective: institutional-grade financial advisory for businesses that could not previously access it. That mission has scaled with its clients.

Today the firm operates with more than 180 professionals across Bengaluru, Mysuru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai, with a presence in Tampa, Florida, and Global Capability Center operations and a US taxation practice that extend the footprint further. Its engagement record tells the story.

dnA Consulting has embraced digital transformation to enhance the quality of decision-making rather than simply improve operational efficiency

Deepak Pokharna, Managing Partner

Success Stories: Execution at Scale

Four large GCCs, executed end to end. dnA has executed four large Global Capability Centers in India, one of them for a Fortune 1000 US-listed logistics company. Each was a complete build: set up, staffed, made compliant and run, with the firm remaining accountable well after go-live.

A USD 1 billion listing, executed and advised. dnA has partnered an Indian company from a valuation of about USD 25 million to nearly USD 1 billion and is today executing and advising its ongoing US listing, with reporting discipline, internal controls and investor readiness built to the standard a US listing demands.

India entry, completed in full. For global businesses entering India, dnA has executed cross-border tax advisory and India entry mandates from start to finish: entity setup, complete FEMA compliance, RBI approvals and filings, and every other statutory execution required to operate, as one engagement, not a chain of referrals.

Rs. 200 crore brought down to nil. The firm's litigation record includes notable wins before tax authorities and appellate forums, the flagship a matter where a demand of Rs. 200 crore was brought down to nil, built on technical depth rather than aggressive positions.

Internal Audit Built for Large Organisations. Conventional audit reviews transactions long after they occur, leaving little room to correct course. dnA's Real-Time Audit model evaluates transactions, internal controls and financial processes continuously through the year, so risks surface early enough to act on.

The model is built for large organisations: multi-entity structures, high transaction volumes, distributed operations and audit committees that expect insight rather than a list of observations. Supported by analytics, its teams work with management to close control gaps: internal audit as a governance function, not a formality.

A Complete CFO Office for Companies at Scale

Complementing assurance is the firm's CFO services practice, where dedicated teams run accounting, compliance, reporting, taxation and strategic financial planning as an ongoing function, serving funded ventures, family-managed enterprises moving to professional governance, and large companies wanting specialist depth without expanding headcount.

"Interactive dashboards give business leaders live visibility into revenue, profitability, expenses and cash flow, so decisions are driven by current business realities instead of historical reports.

For management teams, it also means a complete, multidisciplinary finance office without the time and cost of building one in-house," says Deepak Pokharna, Managing Partner.

GCC Execution, From Setup to Steady State

India's GCC wave has created demand for partners who can do more than advise. dnA's four large GCC builds run across the full lifecycle: entity structuring and regulatory setup, FEMA and RBI compliance, hiring and payroll, finance and compliance operations, and steady-state management once the centre is live. dnA is the rare partner that designs the centre and then runs it, to governance standards that satisfy a listed parent.

One Firm Across Audit | Tax | Advisory | Assurance

As regulatory complexity deepens, dnA has built specialist verticals across direct taxation, GST and indirect tax litigation, statutory and internal audit, accounting and compliance, labour laws, corporate law, intellectual property and legal advisory. Each team works exclusively in its domain while clients engage through a single relationship, removing the friction of coordinating separate audit, tax and legal advisors.

"Integrity remains central to our operating philosophy. We choose to work with businesses committed to transparent practices and regulatory compliance. Sustainable growth is built on disciplined governance, not aggressive tax avoidance, and that approach has earned us long-term trust," mentions Deepak.

A Modern Consulting Enterprise

dnA has embraced digital transformation to enhance the quality of decision-making rather than simply improve operational efficiency, with automation, digital accounting systems and real-time reporting frameworks helping clients maintain stronger controls.

Culture matches: with nearly 80 percent women professionals and a flexible, outcome-oriented workplace, the firm runs on trust, accountability and continuous development.

The Road Ahead

dnA now aims to deepen its presence across India and abroad as the firm of choice for large internal audit mandates, enterprise CFO services, GCC execution and integrated audit, tax, advisory and assurance work.

Above all, it seeks to prove that the greatest value lies not in reviewing performance after the fact, but in enabling better financial decisions every single day.