Director, Technical Accounting – M&A and Investments

Anthropic•San Francisco, CA

21h•Hybrid

About The Position

We are seeking a Director of Technical Accounting – M&A and Investments to join our Finance team at Anthropic. In this role, you will serve as the company’s principal accounting authority for mergers, acquisitions, strategic investments, and other complex capital transactions. You will own the technical accounting lifecycle for every deal — from term-sheet diligence through purchase accounting, opening balance sheet, and post-close measurement-period adjustments — and you will build the function, playbooks, and team required to execute these transactions with public-company rigor. As Anthropic continues to scale rapidly and deploy capital into acquisitions, minority investments, joint ventures, and novel commercial structures, you will be the decisive voice on structuring alternatives, consolidation outcomes, and financial statement impact. You will partner directly with Corporate Development, Legal, Tax, Treasury, FP&A, and executive leadership to ensure that deal economics are accurately reflected under US GAAP and that positions are defensible to external auditors, valuation specialists, and future regulators. This is a builder-leader role: you will establish the M&A and investments accounting function largely from the ground up, recruit and develop a high-performing team, and stand up the controls, valuation governance, and close-ready documentation expected of a large accelerated filer. If you thrive on being in the room when deals are shaped — and then making the accounting land cleanly — we want to hear from you.

Requirements

Have 15+ years of progressive accounting experience, including 6+ years leading teams and owning the accounting for M&A and strategic investment transactions end-to-end
Hold an active CPA license
Bring significant Big 4 experience — ideally including time in a National Office, Transaction/Deal Advisory, or Capital Markets/Accounting Advisory group — paired with in-house experience at a high-growth or public technology company
Have personally led the technical accounting for multiple closed acquisitions and a portfolio of minority/strategic investments, including at least one transaction of meaningful scale or complexity
Possess deep command of US GAAP for business combinations, consolidation, equity method and other investments, fair value measurement, and related areas, with a track record of authoring positions that withstand auditor and regulator scrutiny
Are fluent in valuation concepts and can credibly direct and challenge third-party specialists on PPA, contingent consideration, and impairment models
Have built or materially scaled a deal-accounting or investments-accounting function, including hiring, playbook creation, and controls design
Operate with executive presence — able to influence Corporate Development, Legal, and the C-suite on structuring trade-offs, and to present to the Audit Committee
Demonstrate exceptional written and verbal communication, translating complex deal accounting into clear business implications for non-accountants
Excel at both strategic leadership and hands-on technical review, and move comfortably between the two in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment
Are proficient with accounting systems (NetSuite preferred), consolidation tools, and advanced Excel/modeling

Nice To Haves

Have deep, practitioner-level expertise in one or more of the following: Business combinations and asset acquisitions (ASC 805), including contingent consideration, replacement share-based awards, and step acquisitions Consolidation and VIE analysis (ASC 810), including kick-out/participating rights and primary-beneficiary reassessment Equity method investments and joint ventures (ASC 323), including basis differences and in-substance common stock Equity securities and the measurement alternative (ASC 321), including observable price changes and impairment Fair value measurement (ASC 820) and acquired financial instruments (ASC 815, 825) Goodwill and intangibles, including impairment testing and IPR&D (ASC 350, 360) Foreign currency and highly inflationary considerations in acquired entities (ASC 830)
Have led accounting for carve-outs, divestitures, spin-offs, or legal-entity rationalizations
Have prepared or reviewed pro forma financial information under Article 11 of Regulation S-X and performed S-X Rule 3-05 / 1-02(w) significance testing
Have stood up SOX-compliant controls over non-routine transactions and investment valuation governance
Have experience with novel AI/technology deal structures — acqui-hires, IP/license-heavy transactions, data and compute arrangements, revenue-share partnerships, and strategic investor rights
Have supported S-1 or other registration statement processes for transaction-related financial statements and disclosures
Have implemented or integrated ERP/consolidation platforms for acquired entities
Are passionate about leveraging technology and AI to accelerate diligence, memo drafting, and close

Responsibilities

Serve as the company’s principal technical accounting authority for business combinations, asset acquisitions, strategic equity investments, joint ventures, divestitures, and related financing and equity structures
Lead accounting due diligence on prospective transactions; evaluate structuring alternatives and advise Corporate Development and executive leadership on GAAP, control, and earnings implications before terms are finalized
Own end-to-end purchase accounting: identification of the acquirer, determination of the acquisition date, measurement of consideration transferred (including contingent consideration, rollover equity, and replacement awards), recognition and measurement of identifiable assets and liabilities, and goodwill
Direct the consolidation assessment for every investee and structured arrangement, including VIE identification, primary-beneficiary analysis, and ongoing reconsideration events
Oversee the investment portfolio accounting model — determining and monitoring classification across consolidation, equity method, the measurement alternative, and fair value through earnings — and govern observable-price-change and impairment reviews
Manage third-party valuation specialists; review and challenge purchase price allocations, intangible asset valuations, contingent consideration fair values, and impairment analyses
Author and defend technical accounting memoranda for each transaction; serve as the primary point of contact with external auditors on M&A, investment, and consolidation matters
Build and lead the M&A and Investments Accounting team — define roles, hire, mentor, and set the operating cadence — while remaining a hands-on reviewer on the most judgmental areas
Design and implement the deal-accounting operating model: diligence checklists, Day-1 close playbooks, opening balance sheet procedures, measurement-period tracking, integration accounting workplans, and SOX-ready controls over non-routine transactions
Drive post-close integration accounting, including conforming accounting policies, system/ledger onboarding, working capital true-ups, earn-out remeasurement, and push-down considerations
Prepare and review transaction-related disclosures for quarterly and annual financial statements, including pro forma financial information and significance testing where applicable
Partner with Tax on deal structuring, inside/outside basis differences, and ASC 740 impacts of acquisitions and investments; partner with Treasury and Legal on equity, SAFE/convertible, and complex financing instruments embedded in deals
Present transaction accounting conclusions and financial statement impacts to the Controller, CFO, and Audit Committee in clear, decision-ready terms
Monitor standard-setting and SEC developments affecting business combinations, consolidation, and investments; lead adoption and cross-functional education