CEO & Co-Founder, Jelli Finance · Principal, Highland Advisory Services
David R. Smith is a seasoned finance and business executive with over 25 years of experience spanning Fortune 500 corporations, high-growth startups, and fractional advisory engagements. As CFO of WhiteFall Capital, David brings a rare combination of engineering rigor, financial acumen, and entrepreneurial drive to the firm's financial strategy and capital operations.
As CFO of WhiteFall Capital, David oversees all financial strategy, capital formation, reporting, and compliance functions. His track record leading financial operations across both large-scale enterprises and high-growth startups gives him the versatility to navigate complex capital structures, execute M&A transactions, and build the financial infrastructure required to scale.
CEO & Co-Founder — Jelli Finance Co., a fintech startup reimagining personal banking through a real-time, envelope-style budgeting platform with integrated social finance features and instant cash-back rewards. The company raised a $17.5 million Series A led by Blue Heron Capital with participation from Nuveen and Communitas Capital.
Principal — Highland Advisory Services, a fractional CFO advisory firm serving businesses across fintech, solar, healthcare, and other sectors with profitability analysis, business strategy, M&A advisory, forecasting, and hands-on financial operations support.
David began his career at Fortune 500 companies including Procter & Gamble and Eastman Chemical Company, building a foundation in business management, marketing, and finance. He then held senior roles at Green Dot, MovoCash, Cascade FinTech, Kaiku, and Cardplatforms, accumulating deep expertise in payments, prepaid financial products, and digital banking operations.
Beyond fintech, David has advised and led financial functions across consumer products, manufacturing, healthcare, solar energy, and donor-advised charitable funds — a breadth that informs a versatile perspective on operations, capital structures, and growth strategy.
