Meet the Team

Ashok Rao
Senior Consultant & Executive Director

  • Chartered Accountant (CA)
  • 20+ years of experience
  • Countries of Experience
    India
    Bhutan
    Sri Lanka
    Middle East
    Philippines
  • Connect:

Ashok specializes in public finance and governance and works with governments in designing and implementing reform programs to solve present day governance challenges. He also helps governments implement process transformation initiatives in public financial management and service delivery. He has certifications in the areas of Public Finance Management, Climate Finance, and Public Policy.He serves as a short-term consultant to the World Bank Group in the area of Public Finance.

He is a special invitee of the Committee on Public and Government Financial Management of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and was instrumental in drafting seven Accounting standards for local bodies. Ashok is a regular trainer on various public finance topics. He regularly publishes articles in various journals and blogs on public finance topics. When not at work, Ashok enjoys reading, listening to music, and exploring spirituality.

Ashok Rao’s Area of Expertise

Core Compentencies
  • Public Finance and Governance
  • Design and Implementation of Reform Programs
  • Process Implementation and Transformation in PFM
Industry Experience
Public Sector - Central, State & Local Governments, Development Agencies, Government Companies, Boards and Authorities, State Audit Institutions.

Private Sector - MSMEs in Engineering, Food Processing, IT, Telecom, BFSI, Cement, Building Materials, Healthcare and Hospitality sectors.

Not-for-Profit Organisations - NGOs engaged in micro finance, urban civic reform, e-Governance.

Ashok Rao's Publications

XGRL: XBRL for Reporting in Government

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Article published in The Chartered Accountant (ICAI), 2012,


Managing accounting reforms in local bodies

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Published in The Dynamics of Local Governance by ICAI, 2015,


Making smart cities financially smart

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Article in Governance Now, 2016,


Opportunities for Chartered Accountants in Public Finance

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Bangalore Branch SIRC newsletter, 2017,


Code brings Indian municipalities under one roof

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Article in Public Finance International , 2018,


Commitment Control: A step towards (or beyond) accrual accounting

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
IMF PFM Blog, 2019,


Preparation of a Medium-term Fiscal Plan for a Municipal City Corporation in Karnataka: Practitioner’s Insights

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Article in AarthikaCharche - Journal of the Fiscal Policy Institute, 2019,


PFM actions by Indian states to combat Covid-19PFM actions by Indian states to combat Covid-19

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
PFM Blog by IMF, 2020,


XV Central Finance Commission’s recommendations on public debt management

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Article published in Deccan Herald, 2022,


Towards audited financial statements of urban local bodies in India: Key issues and way forward

Authors Name: Ashok Rao
Article published in The Chartered Accountant (ICAI), 2022,
ISBN no. 978-81-926675-6-0


Latest Social Media Post

  • The January 2022 edition of @institute The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India's e-journal 'The Chartered Accountant' featured an article on Public Finance Management written by our consultants CA. Praveena Raja and CA.
    2022