Operating Budget and Transparency #
Why Beancount? #
We use Beancount for our financial tracking because it’s:
- Plain text, version-controlled, and auditable
- Built for double-entry bookkeeping without the complexity of Xero/MYOB
- Open source, with tools for reconciliation and reporting
The ledger currently resides in our private repository, with scripts that:
- Import and process ANZ bank statements
- Categorize transactions manually (we’re building rules to automate this)
- Export aggregated summaries for the public report you see below
Towards Radical Transparency #
As a radically open enterprise, we believe our ledger should be public but not too keen on revealing our account details and those of our donors. For now we keep the ledger in a private repo and export the report below.
Our OpenCollective procedures and workflows are still being set up. Much will depend on our first pilot collective, and we expect to collaborate and co-develop these practices with other teams as we learn.
Current Snapshot (29 April 2026) #
Since the last update the ledger has absorbed another month of trading — a second founder contribution landed, and operational spending continued across hosting, events, and AI tooling.
- Total founder equity contributed: $10,050.40 NZD ($10,000.00 initial funding in July 2025, plus a $50.40 payroll-allocation contribution in April 2026)
- JJobs held funds: $49.86 NZD (earmarked from a Stripe payout; untouched)
- Expenses to date: $3,228.00 NZD (hosting across DigitalOcean, AWS, Rimu, Bytescale, Namecheap, and Metaname; events and meetups; trademark R&D; AI subscriptions; marketing; meals; and operational costs)
- Income (interest, donation): $51.28 NZD
- Net result: -$3,176.72 NZD (loss while bootstrapping)
- Current bank balance: $6,897.72 NZD ($6,316.86 call + $580.86 current)
- Payables outstanding: $0.00 NZD (all payables cleared — CookieAndMe paid, John reimbursed)
Expenses & Income (NZD)
| Account | Amount |
|---|---|
| Expenses:AI:Anomaly | 45.82 NZD |
| Expenses:AI:Anthropic | 10.42 NZD |
| Expenses:AI:Github | 6.18 NZD |
| Expenses:Equipment:Monitors | 199.00 NZD |
| Expenses:Events | 850.75 NZD |
| Expenses:Fees:Stripe | 0.91 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:AWS | 228.10 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:Bytescale | 54.68 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:DigitalOcean | 540.76 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:ForwardEmail | 60.00 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:Metaname | 113.27 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:Namecheap | 218.36 NZD |
| Expenses:Hosting:Rimu | 122.49 NZD |
| Expenses:Legal:Incorporation | 148.05 NZD |
| Expenses:Marketing | 100.00 NZD |
| Expenses:Meals | 167.00 NZD |
| Expenses:Professional:Memberships | 31.44 NZD |
| Expenses:RnD:Trademarks | 322.00 NZD |
| Expenses:Tax:RWT | 8.77 NZD |
| Income:Donations:OpenCollective | -20.00 NZD |
| Income:Interest | -31.28 NZD |
Assets & Liabilities (NZD)
| Account | Amount |
|---|---|
| Assets:Bank:Call | 6316.86 NZD |
| Assets:Bank:Current | 580.86 NZD |
| Assets:Payments:Stripe | 19.09 NZD |
| Assets:Prepaid:Metaname | 6.73 NZD |
| Liabilities:Projects:JJobs | -49.86 NZD |
Sustainability Principles #
- Keep burn rate low
- Avoid dependence on a single funder or partner
- Use open-source and decentralized tools where practical
- Build systems others can fork and reuse
This budget is intentionally lean — as we grow, our operating model may evolve. Our goal remains: reliable infrastructure with minimal financial friction, built on planning and relationships. We’re not here to rack up billable hours; if you find value in what we do, we invite contributions and collaboration.