Fractional CFO services in Chile

Start-Up Chile

Start-Up Chile is the federal accelerator providing grants (CLP 12-75M+ depending on programme) and acceleration support for Chilean and international founders setting up in Chile. Most active CORFO-administered programme and a credibility marker for later VC rounds.

CORFO grants and lending

CORFO (Production Development Corporation) is Chile's federal economic development agency. Provides innovation grants, subsidised lending and equity participation via partner funds. The main public-sector capital source for Chilean SMEs and startups.

R&D tax credit

Chile's R&D tax credit (Ley I+D) provides a 35% non-refundable corporate income tax credit on qualifying R&D expenditure. Requires pre-approval and certification by CORFO. Smaller in absolute terms than Brazilian Lei do Bem but still a meaningful incentive.

Chilean VC ecosystem

Active funds include Magma Partners, Fen Ventures, Manutara Ventures, Quest Ventures and Genesis Ventures. Cross-border participation from Mexican, US and European investors common at growth stage.

Chilean angel ecosystem

Chile has a meaningful angel scene driven by Cornershop (acquired by Uber), NotCo, Betterfly, Cumplo and other Chilean tech alumni. ChileGlobal Angels and other networks coordinate structured angel investment.

Venture debt

Chilean venture debt is limited but growing. Cross-border providers (Sympatico Capital, Partners for Growth) operate in Chile alongside CORFO-backed lending products. Typically deployed against ARR or contracted revenue from Series A onwards.

Standard stock options

Chilean stock options are typically taxed at exercise as employment income at marginal rates (up to 40% Global Complementario). Less favourable than UK EMI; case-by-case structuring around grant pricing matters.

Offshore (Delaware) ESOPs

Most venture-backed Chilean startups operate via a Delaware (or sometimes Cayman) holding parent over Chilean operating subsidiaries. ESOPs at the offshore parent benefit from cleaner cap-table mechanics; Chilean-resident employees still face Chilean tax on exercise.

Phantom shares and SARs

Cash-settled equity-like instruments are widely used in Chilean startups, particularly in pure-Chilean structures. The holder receives a cash bonus equal to the value of a notional option at exit. Taxed as employment income at payout.

Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)

Used at later-stage Chilean companies, particularly Delaware-parent structures with US investors. Taxed as employment income at vesting at marginal rates for Chilean-resident employees.

Option valuation

Chilean startups typically peg option strike values to the price of the most recent priced round. Independent valuations are useful for material grant programmes to support the SII (Chilean tax authority) position on fair market value.

Reporting and SII

Option exercises flow through Chilean payroll for income tax (Impuesto Único de Segunda Categoría) and AFP contributions. Annual employer reporting required. Worth aligning between cap-table tool, Chilean payroll provider and tax advisor.

Accounting

• •Defontana - common Chilean SME accounting platform.
• •Nubox - modern Chilean cloud accounting alternative.
• •NetSuite - for late-stage companies needing multi-entity consolidation.

Payroll

• •Defontana Sueldos or Nubox Remuneraciones - common Chilean payroll modules.
• •Buk - modern Chilean HR + payroll platform.
• •Deel or Remote - for hiring contractors and staff outside Chile.

Business banking

• •Banco de Chile, Santander Chile or BancoEstado - for treasury, FX and traditional debt.
• •BCI or Itaú Chile - alternatives with strong corporate coverage.
• •Mercury - for Chilean founders with a US C-corp parent.
• •Wise Business - for multi-currency operations.

Cap table & equity admin

• •Carta - dominant for Chilean venture-backed companies (typically with Delaware parent).
• •Pulley - strong alternative.
• •Ledgy - alternative with cross-border coverage.

Expenses & corporate cards

• •Clara - Latin America-wide spend management platform.
• •Brex or Ramp - for Chilean founders with US C-corp parent.
• •Local Chilean corporate cards via Banco de Chile, Santander or BCI.