Public Funding Finance Manager

The role

This role manages public funding and grant finance for the whole group, including EU and national R&D incentives, and funder audits. It also runs accounting, reporting and tax compliance for the Italian entity.

What you will do

• Own financial reporting and cost claims for publicly funded projects, including European Commission programmes
• Manage grant cost eligibility, timesheets, overhead calculations and supporting documents
• Own the WBSO application and reporting, and other R&D incentive claims across jurisdictions
• Maintain a group-wide grant register covering values, claims, cash receipts and clawback risk
• Support grant accounting under IAS 20 and grant cash flow forecasting
• Act as primary finance contact for funder audits, CFS and ex-post controls
• Own month-end close, statutory reporting and group reporting for the Italian entity
• Liaise with external tax advisers on IRES, IRAP, IVA, withholding tax and transfer pricing
• Support tax audits and authority queries
• Design internal controls and policies for grant compliance

Required qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Accounting, Finance, Economics or similar
• 5+ years in finance, ideally including public funding or grant management
• Hands-on experience with EU-funded project financial reporting
• Strong working knowledge of Italian GAAP (OIC), statutory reporting and Italian tax (IRES, IRAP, IVA)
• Working knowledge of IFRS and supporting group consolidation or reporting
• Experience managing statutory audits and working with external auditors and tax advisers
• Proficiency with ERP systems and advanced Excel
• Fluent Italian (written and spoken)
• Professional-level English

Nice to have

• Professional qualification such as Dottore Commercialista, ACCA, ACA, CPA or equivalent
• Experience with IAS 20 grant accounting and R&D incentive schemes in multiple countries
• Experience in a multi-entity, multi-currency, international group
• Familiarity with state aid rules and clawback mechanisms
• Experience in a scale-up or high-growth environment

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Equity participation
• Hybrid working
• Opportunities for professional development
• Direct exposure to group leadership and an international scope

Before you apply

• Candidates must be fluent in Italian and have professional-level English

About the company

Axelera AI is a fast-growing fabless semiconductor company headquartered in the Netherlands, building AI acceleration hardware and software. It operates across the EU, UK, Switzerland and the US.