FAQs - Financials

My EBITDA and Revenue are the only numbers I'm confident about. What should I do?

Enter Revenue and EBITDA, then click "Modelize Remaining". The AI will use your two anchor figures plus your industry and company size to estimate the remaining fields. This is the recommended approach when you have partial information.

 My fiscal year doesn't end on December 31. What do I do?

No problem. Use your actual fiscal year-end figures. If your fiscal year ends March 31, 2024, enter "2024" (or "FY2024") as your most recently completed fiscal year, and use the numbers from your March 2024 financial statements.

I only have one year of financials. Is that okay?

Yes. Enter your available year and leave the prior year column blank (or use the Modelize Remaining feature to estimate prior year figures). One year of real data is still more accurate than fully modeled financials.

 What if some fields don't apply to my business?

Enter 0 for any field that genuinely doesn't apply. For example, if you have no R&D spending, no interest income, and no debt — enter 0 for those fields. Do not leave them blank, as this can affect the platform's calculations.

 Can I update my financials later?

Absolutely. Return to Company Profile → Financials at any time to update your figures. We recommend refreshing your financials annually once your year-end books are closed.

Should I use cash-basis or accrual-basis numbers?

Optionality uses accrual-basis accounting (GAAP standard). If your bookkeeping is on a cash basis, your accountant-prepared tax return will typically have accrual adjustments. Use those figures. If you only have cash-basis records, enter those — it's better than nothing, and note the difference if asked.

 I'm a sole proprietor. Where do I find these numbers?

If you file as a sole proprietor (Schedule C in the US, T1 Business schedule in Canada), you'll find your revenue and expense figures there. Your bank's business account year-end summary is also a helpful cross-reference. If you use bookkeeping software, run a Profit & Loss report for the calendar year.