About

Oana Labes, MBA, CPA

Oana Labes is the founder of the CEO Financial Intelligence Academy and CEO of Financiario — the strategic finance platform built to report, forecast, and advise like a CFO in real time. A CPA and MBA with 15 years in commercial lending, she has worked with hundreds of CEOs across industries and built one of LinkedIn's largest finance audiences worldwide.

MBA
CPA
15+ Years in Finance
Forbes Featured
LinkedIn Instructor
3x Founder
Oana Labes, MBA, CPA
The Story

I kept seeing the same pattern.
And it kept costing people everything.

"Great CEOs. Strong companies. No financial intelligence. And the consequences were brutal — missed opportunities, cash crises, underperforming exits, valuations that should have been 3× higher."

I spent 15 years inside finance at the highest levels — as a commercial lender with hundreds of millions in financing responsibility, then as a strategic advisor to CEOs, boards, and investors. I enabled over $300 million in debt financing and watched hundreds of companies navigate capital raises, PE transactions, and exits.

And I watched dozens fail. Not because the leaders weren't brilliant — because the same pattern repeated every time. Waiting on the CFO to interpret the numbers. Running without guardrails on capital and cash. Making million-dollar decisions on gut feel. By the time the crisis arrived, it was too late.

I built the Academy to change that. The highest-leverage lessons from 15 years of scaling and saving companies — packaged into a practical system any CEO can learn, apply, and own permanently.

By the Numbers

$300M+
Debt financing enabled in corporate career
450K+
LinkedIn followers worldwide
150M+
Post views in the last two years
28
Countries represented across the Academy
$6B+
Combined revenue led by Academy members
MBA — Top Canadian Business School Graduate-level business education with deep focus on corporate finance and strategic management.
CPA — Chartered Professional Accountant Highest professional designation in accounting, finance, and strategic advisory.
Forbes Featured Recognized by Forbes for leadership in financial intelligence education for CEOs.
The Mission

"Financial intelligence is not the CFO's job. It is the CEO's ultimate competitive advantage. Every decision you make flows through your financials. CEOs who master this become indispensable. CEOs who don't become a liability to their own company."

How I Build

Three beliefs that shape
everything in the Academy.

01

CEOs must own their numbers — not just read them.

Reports and dashboards given to you by your CFO are not financial intelligence. The ability to interrogate those numbers, challenge the assumptions behind them, and connect them to your decisions — that's what the Academy builds.

02

Infrastructure that stays beats advice that walks out the door.

I've watched companies lose their CFO and lose their entire financial operating capability overnight. The Academy builds financial intelligence that belongs to the CEO — permanently. Not dependent on any one person who can retire or resign.

03

The best time to build financial intelligence was five years ago.

CEOs who wait until a crisis — a covenant breach, a cash shortfall, a failed PE transaction — pay a price that can never fully be recovered. The Academy is built on urgency, not comfort. Start before you need it.

Experience & Expertise

15 years of building, funding,
and saving companies.

Commercial Banking & Debt Financing

Over a decade as a commercial lender with hundreds of millions in financing responsibility. Deep expertise in covenant structures, debt capacity, credit assessment, and lender relationships across industries and capital structures.

Strategic Finance & CEO Advisory

Worked directly with hundreds of CEOs, boards, and PE investors — connecting financial data to strategic decisions on hiring, capital allocation, expansion, risk management, and exit planning.

PE Transactions, M&A & Exit Planning

Extensive experience with PE due diligence, M&A transactions, institutional reporting, multi-entity consolidation, and exit readiness. Financiario builds the same infrastructure PE firms and acquirers expect — for companies that aren't there yet.

Global Finance Education & Content

One of LinkedIn's largest worldwide finance content creators. Recognized by Forbes. Teaching CEO-level financial intelligence to executives across 28 countries, across every major industry vertical.

Ready to build financial intelligence
that stays in your company forever?

Join hundreds of executives from 28 countries who are leading with clarity, confidence, and conviction. The program starts with the free masterclass.

Explore the Academy →
Or watch the free masterclass →