Shihan Sheriff

About Shihan: 20+ years in finance, explained in plain English

Shihan Sheriff, FCMA, CGMA, CPA (Australia), MBA (General), MBA (Data Science & AI), UAECA, CAAB, CAAS, is a Dubai-based CFO, author and finance educator, originally from Sri Lanka. He is Chief Financial Officer of Esanjo Ventures Ltd and Group, Vice President of Finance at Nomod and founder and CEO of Money Master HQ. He is a four-time Amazon bestselling author, and his book Accounting Fundamentals won a Bronze Medal at the IPPY Awards 2024 and a Gold Medal at the Global Book Awards 2024. Through his books, talks, workshops and advisory work, he helps business owners and non-finance managers understand their numbers and make better decisions with them.

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The Story

From Accounting to A Bigger Mission

The FoundationJohn Keells Hotels, 2005

Joined John Keells Hotels as an Accountant. Authored the group's annual report, which won Best Annual Report for Hotel Companies (2005-06), and was named Employee of the Year for 2006-07.

The BuildOlive Real Estate, 2008

Moved to Dubai as Finance & Admin Manager at Olive Real Estate, engineering the finance function from scratch and writing the HR and admin policies.

The ScaleEsanjo, 2010

Joined Esanjo as Finance Manager in Downtown Dubai and was promoted to Chief Financial Officer in 2012, a role he still holds, leading finance for the whole group, including JadoPado.com, with teams in the UAE and overseas.

The TransformationFinance Meets Data

Moved the finance function from manual work to automation and data analytics. His qualifications include an MBA (General) and an MBA (Data Science & AI).

The MissionNomod and Money Master HQ

VP of Finance at Nomod, a Y Combinator-backed fintech, since 2022, and founder of Money Master HQ (SS Coaching, LLC), making finance and accounting simple for business owners through books, the podcast, free tools and the Growth and Scale Summit.

"Finance should not be a language only accountants speak. My mission is to make it simple for everyone."
Career

Career chronology

  1. 2005Accountant, John Keells Hotels, Sri Lanka
  2. 2008Finance & Admin Manager, Olive Real Estate, Dubai
  3. 2010Finance Manager, Esanjo, Dubai
  4. 2012 to presentChief Financial Officer, Esanjo Ventures Ltd and Group
  5. 2017Director Business Development, SLBC Dubai and Northern Emirates board (Daily FT)
  6. 2020Speaker, Accounting & Finance Show Middle East (Terrapinn)
  7. 2022 to presentVice President of Finance, Nomod (Y Combinator-backed)
  8. 2024 and 2025Host, Business Growth & Scale Summit 2024 and Passive Income Summit 2025
  9. CurrentVice Chairman, Sri Lankan Business Council UAE (reported by Daily FT in 2026)
  10. CurrentFounder and CEO, Money Master HQ (operated by SS Coaching, LLC)
  11. CurrentFounder, AI for Business and Life
Credentials

Qualifications and awarding bodies

  • FCMA (Fellow Chartered Management Accountant)

    Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), UK

  • CGMA (Chartered Global Management Accountant)

    Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), UK

  • CPA (Australia)

    CPA Australia

  • MBA (Data Science & AI)

    Ascencia Business School, High Distinction

  • MBA (General)

    Torrens University Australia, High Distinction

  • UAECA, CAAB and CAAS

    Professional designations held

  • Doctorate of Business Administration (in progress)

    SBS Swiss Business School

Core Expertise

Where Finance Meets Real Growth

1

Financial Strategy & Corporate Finance

Financial modeling, treasury, cash flow and corporate finance that turn numbers into decisions.

2

Financial Reporting & Consolidation

IFRS reporting, group consolidation, variance analysis and cost accounting across multiple entities and industries.

3

Audit, Risk & Internal Controls

Internal and external audit, risk management and internal controls that protect the business and build trust.

4

AI for Finance & Education

MBA (General), MBA (Data Science & AI) and 250+ educational and professional courses, applied to finance workflows and taught in plain English to non-finance professionals.

FinanceAccountingFinancial AuditsInternal ControlsCash FlowIFRSConsolidationFinancial ReportingVariance AnalysisCost AccountingRisk ManagementExternal AuditFinancial ModelingInternal AuditCorporate FinanceTreasury Management
Experience & Credibility

Awards & Recognition

Bronze Medal, IPPY Awards 2024 (international award-winning author)

Four-time Amazon bestselling author

Speaker at the Accounting and Finance Show 2019 and 2020

Advisor, Advisory Panel, Accounting and Finance Show 2019 (organized by Terrapinn)

Vice Chairman, Sri Lankan Business Council, U.A.E. (past Director Secretary to the Board and past Director of Business Development)

Employee of the Year, Hotels Sector, John Keells Hotels (2006-07)

Part of the team awarded Best Annual Report for Hotel Companies (2005-06)

Global Book Awards 2024 winner

Certified AI App Builder (1000x AI, 2025)

Executive Development Programme on Anti Money Laundering, Postgraduate Institute of Management (2022)

Presentation Skills, Harvard Business Review (2022)

Host of the Growth and Scale Summit

FCMA, CGMA, CPA (Australia), MBA (General), MBA (Data Science & AI), UAECA, CAAB, CAAS · MBA (Data Science & AI), Ascencia Business School (High Distinction) · MBA (General), Torrens University Australia (High Distinction) · Doctorate of Business Administration (in progress), SBS Swiss Business School

Shihan Sheriff
About Shihan

Shihan Sheriff is CFO at Esanjo Ventures Ltd and Group and VP of Finance at Nomod, a Y Combinator-backed fintech based in Dubai, U.A.E. With over 20 years of experience in finance and accounting across hospitality, real estate, e-commerce and fintech, he is a four-time Amazon bestselling and international award-winning author, including a Bronze Medal at the IPPY Awards 2024. He is the founder of Money Master HQ (SS Coaching, LLC) and host of The Money Master HQ Show. Outside work he enjoys time with his family, cricket and tennis.

Sources

Verified awards and recognition

Each item links to its public source.

Founder

My Ventures and Educational Platforms

Money Master HQ

Finance and accounting in plain English for business owners and non-finance managers. Shihan is the founder and CEO; it is operated by SS Coaching, LLC.

Visit Money Master HQ (opens in a new tab)

AI for Business and Life

Shihan's platform on putting AI to work in business and everyday life. He is its founder.

Visit AI for Business and Life (opens in a new tab)

Business Growth & Scale Summit

The summit site with replays from the Business Growth & Scale Summit 2024 and the Passive Income Summit 2025, both hosted by Shihan.

Visit Business Growth & Scale Summit (opens in a new tab)

Finance & Accounting Dictionary

Plain-English definitions of business, finance and accounting terms for non-finance professionals.

Visit Finance & Accounting Dictionary (opens in a new tab)

The Money Master HQ Show

Shihan's podcast, with conversations on finance, business growth and lifelong learning.

Visit The Money Master HQ Show (opens in a new tab)
LinkedIn Recommendations

In Their Words

Shihan earns my highest recommendation

It was a great pleasure to work with Shihan at Keells Hotel Management Ltd, Colombo. He is a fantastic professional who brings all of his skills and expertise in accounting. Shihan has made me improve in many internal accounting procedures and helped immensely to improve my knowledge of SAP financial modules. His ability to work through the crisis and develop new ways to achieve the targets were always inspiring. I am delighted to work and learn with such professionals. As a leader, Shihan earns my highest recommendation.
Asela Jayasekara

He will be a valuable asset to any company

I know Shihan since he began working for JKH as an Accountant. I have seen his remarkable transition to a full-time accountant within a short period of time. Since then, there is no looking back for Shihan and his passion for accounting procedures makes him a valuable asset for the firm. Shihan takes every task as a challenge and completes it successfully. He is hardworking, excellent with numbers, and extremely punctual. Everyone in the company values his sense of expertise in making things quite easy to understand. I highly recommend Shihan for any top managerial position like CEO in any organization that he wishes to apply to.
Sinan Mohamed

I would love to work with him again

Shihan is a delightful person to be around. He is the most profound person I have met and his ability to tackle any problem is remarkable with a warm smile. During his initial career with Olive real estate, he mastered the art of managing finance and administration. Being one of the most dedicated professionals I have worked with, he is always willing to lend a helping hand when needed. His expertise as a finance head is considerable, and it helped the owners come up with more efficient ideas on different leads. His contribution was valuable to the side, I highly admire his professional growth and would love to work with him again.
Satya Chitra S

He was professional and understanding

Shihan was my CFO at JadoPado.com and he is one of the best supervisors that I have worked with. He was professional and understanding. He has a unique ability to organize the working process in a way that lets employees demonstrate the full extent of their professional skills. I also have to thank him for helping me to improve my excel and analytical skills. He is a true leader.
Lakshika Weerapura

Very experienced in Finance, Accounting and Automation

Shihan is indeed a charismatic leader and mentor and I believe my Esanjo team would all be in the same page with regards to it. He has many years of experience in the field of Finance, Accounting and Automation, he knows variety of creative methods and he always ensures what he learned is passed on to others and he loves sharing knowledge. He is very good at organizing and bringing people together and very calm under pressure and is always able to manage unforeseen events smoothly. It was a great pleasure to work with him and will always look forward to work with him in future.
Wasil Nawfal, MBA, CIMA

A highly intellectual and meticulous person

Shihan is a highly intellectual and meticulous person with amazing analytical skills in finance and operations. A great people person and a genuine asset to any company. It was a real pleasure working with him.
Justine Chetty
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