Crete Professionals Alliance Reimagines Accounting for the 21st Century

Crete Professionals Alliance ("Crete PA"), an alliance of accounting and professional services firms, announced today that it has raised strategic capital in a round led by Thrive Capital and Bessemer Venture Partners. With this infusion of capital, Crete PA will be able to accelerate its plans to bring more firms into its alliance, while helping the firms enable and scale technology, including leveraging Artificial Intelligence, to bring accounting into the 21st century.

"Thrive and Bessemer both have proven track records as investors and innovators in fast-evolving technology, including artificial intelligence and vertical software," said Jake Sloane, Co-Founder of Crete PA. "With their support, we believe we're uniquely positioned to utilize technology to enhance the productivity of our partner firms and our employees' professional development and opportunities, while maintaining our commitment to delivering excellent client service."

"Crete is the perfect strategic partner for regional firms working to grow in a rapidly evolving industry," said Kareem Zaki, Partner of Thrive Capital. "Thrive is thrilled to partner with Crete to empower independent accounting firms to keep what makes them special locally, while helping them expand their capabilities to take advantage of the new technological breakthroughs built for accounting."

"We're excited about Crete's ability to provide the resources of a scaled national platform to accounting firms, while maintaining their independence in brand, culture, and day-to-day operations," said Brian Feinstein, Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners. "While many firms are talking about this industry's rapidly evolving technology, Crete is acting on it, and we're excited to support them in that mission."

Historically, independent accounting firms have faced two options: remain independent with more limited resources or merge upstream and dissolve their identity. Crete PA's partnership model preserves local autonomy and culture while tapping into national platform capabilities and cutting-edge technology solutions. These value-added back-office services include dedicated recruiting, finance, accounting & business analytics, legal & compliance, insurance & benefits, enhanced technology, and growth operations, and this model has led to alliances with a growing number of accounting firms with multi-decade track records of excellent client service.

ABOUT CRETE PROFESSIONAL ALLIANCE

The accounting industry is fundamentally changing, partially driven by the uptick in Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) activities in the past several years. Crete Professionals Alliance ("Crete PA") established itself in 2023 to create an alternative to the traditional exit options for accounting and professional services firm owners. Crete PA partners with firms across the country to complement their existing strengths and support their future growth. Its structure supports local leadership, local brands, and local cultures while providing access to its national back-office resources and financial backing. Crete makes investment in the non-attest businesses of accounting firms, all of which adopt an alternative practice structure.