AICPA Private Companies Practice Section
Active member firm in the AICPA PCPS, the dedicated resource center for firms serving private-company clients — a credential held by a small percentage of mid-market practices nationally.
BOSTON · AUSTIN · EST. 1998
A partner-level tax, accounting, and wealth advisory practice, founded in Boston in 1998.
For 26 years, GD Financial has combined CPA-grade tax expertise with CFO-level strategic advisory under one roof — helping established business owners keep more of what they earn while positioning for a clean, tax-optimized exit.
- AICPA Private Companies Practice Section
- National Association of Tax Professionals
- CAMICO — $5M aggregate coverage
Gregory D. Fennell, CPA — Founder & Managing Partner
THE FOUNDER
Founded by Gregory D. Fennell, CPA, after a decade at Deloitte Tax LLP.
In 1998, after ten years inside Deloitte Tax LLP, Greg Fennell opened a single-room practice on Boston’s State Street with a contrarian thesis: that ambitious business owners did not need a tax preparer and a separate wealth advisor and a separate fractional CFO — they needed one credentialed bench that could do all three, in lockstep.
Twenty-six years on, that thesis has scaled into a 24-person firm managing over $2.1 billion in aggregate client revenue across 1,800+ active entities in 38 states — without ever outsourcing the work that matters. The team today includes 12 licensed CPAs, 5 credentialed financial planners, plus CFAs, JDs, and one former IRS Senior Revenue Agent who leads our representation and resolution work.
The numbers tell the same story the clients do: a 96% year-over-year client retention rate measured across the 2021–2024 fiscal periods, more than 22,000 federal and state returns filed with a 0.00% IRS penalty rate for the last 11 consecutive filing seasons, and an average 23.4% tax-savings rate identified for new business-owner clients in their first 12 months — measured against a 7–9% industry benchmark.
Greg still reviews the largest engagements personally. The firm has never been sold, and he has no intention of selling it.
THE BENCH
Credentialed depth, kept in-house.
A 24-person team built around the work that most firms subcontract away. Every engagement is led by a credentialed principal — never delegated to a junior associate you have never met.
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12 Licensed CPAs & 3 CFAs
Tax, audit, and investment analysis led by a senior credentialed bench — not outsourced. The CFA cohort handles valuation work for our Exit Readiness Framework, used in 140+ successful business sales where clients averaged 2.3x EBITDA at close.
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5 Credentialed Financial Planners
Wealth advisory integrated with tax planning — not bolted on afterward. Planners sit inside the tax engagement so every distribution, contribution, and entity choice is coordinated against the owner’s long-term plan.
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2 JDs & Entity Counsel
In-house legal capacity for entity structuring, succession documents, and transaction support. The same team that designs the holdco also drafts the operating agreements — no handoffs to outside counsel for the work that defines the plan.
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1 Former IRS Senior Revenue Agent
Representation and resolution support for examinations, notices, and escalations — led by a named individual who previously sat on the other side of the table. A credential we disclose specifically because it cannot be generalized to the broader team.
PRESS & RECOGNITION
Accounting Today — Top 100 Regional Firms (2022, 2023, 2024)
AWARD
Boston Business Journal — Best of Boston, Tax Advisory (2023)
CONTRIBUTOR
Forbes Finance Council, Inc. Magazine, CFO Brew (2020–2024)
PROGRAM
The Owner Operator’s Playbook — free monthly webinar, 1,100+ attendees per session
Twenty-six years of measurable practice
A firm measured by what it has filed, retained, and resolved.
Since 1998, GD Financial, P.C. has prepared and filed more than 22,000 federal and state tax returns with a 0.00% IRS penalty rate across the last eleven consecutive filing seasons. The numbers below are drawn from internal practice records and published third-party rankings — not projections.
- 22,000+ Federal & state returns filed since 1998 Zero IRS penalties across the last 11 filing seasons.
- 96% Year-over-year client retention Measured across the 2021–2024 fiscal periods.
- $2.1B Aggregate client revenue under advisory Across 1,800+ active client entities in 38 states.
- 2.3× Average EBITDA multiple at exit Achieved across 140+ business sales using the firm's proprietary 7-step Exit Readiness Framework.
Institutional Standing
Named by the institutions that hold the profession to account.
GD Financial maintains active memberships with the bodies that set the standards for tax, accounting, and advisory practice — and carries professional liability coverage that exceeds state licensing minimums by a factor of twelve.
National Association of Tax Professionals
Member firm, with senior partners holding the NATP credential and contributing to continuing-education programming for the broader tax profession.
$5M CAMICO Professional Liability
Professional liability insurance through CAMICO with $5 million in aggregate coverage — exceeding state licensing minimums by 12×, and a deliberate signal of how the firm underwrites its own engagement risk.
Forbes · Inc. · CFO Brew
Featured contributor between 2020 and 2024 across Forbes Finance Council, Inc. Magazine, and CFO Brew — selected publications for senior-level commentary on tax policy and operator-side finance.
Sit down with a senior partner.
Thirty minutes, on the calendar, with a senior partner — not a junior associate or a sales development rep. We will review your prior-year return, surface one or two tax-leverage opportunities we can identify before any engagement is signed, and tell you plainly whether GD Financial is the right firm for the work ahead.
For owners of established small-to-mid-market businesses ($1M–$50M revenue) considering a proactive tax, fractional CFO, or exit-planning engagement.