About Ben Wagner
Hello!Ben Wagner spent the early part of his career doing the work that most business owners hire someone else to worry about: public accounting at Kerkering Barberio, international management consulting, private equity, and a series of CFO roles across industries. Along the way, he served as CFO of the Sarasota Yacht Club and holds board and advisory positions with companies including Nuvocar, Inc., Mariposa Technologies and Meals on Wheels.
That track record eventually led to a question he kept hearing from business owners: how do I actually get out of this thing on my terms? He heard it often enough that it became the foundation of a firm.
Ben co-founded LiNQ Ventures, LLC with his wife, building it around the idea that small and mid-size business owners deserve the same quality of financial guidance that large companies take for granted. LiNQ is based in Sarasota, Florida, and works with business owners across the state.
What LiNQ Ventures Does
LiNQ Ventures operates across three areas, each connected by the same underlying belief: business owners make better decisions when they have serious financial expertise in their corner.
Fractional CFO Services. Not every business needs a full-time CFO. But most growing businesses need more financial leadership than a bookkeeper and a tax CPA can provide. LiNQ offers fractional CFO engagements that give owners access to senior financial expertise at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire: cash flow forecasting, financial modeling, banking relationships, reporting, and the kind of forward-looking analysis that helps owners make decisions with confidence.
AI for Business. Ben's introduction to AI was the same as a lot of business owners: a mix of curiosity and skepticism, wondering what was actually useful and what was noise. He did the work to figure it out, and now helps owners cut through the hype and identify the tools and workflows that make a real difference in their operations. The goal is not to turn anyone into a technologist. The goal is practical: AI should save you time, reduce costs, and help your business run better.
Exit Advisory and Business Sales. Business exit advisory and business brokerage are handled by BRiNQ, a separate firm operating under Florida Business Opportunities, Inc. and co-founded by Ben. When a LiNQ client’s transition is a sale, LiNQ refers the engagement to BRiNQ under a separate agreement. The two firms are not one company and do not share services.
Recognition and Credentials
Ben has been recognized by The Observer Group as a 40 Under 40 honoree and received the CFO of the Year award from the Business Journal, recognitions that reflect his track record in both the financial and business communities in the Sarasota region.
Why It Matters That He Has Done This
There is no shortage of people who will tell a business owner what to do. There are fewer who have actually held the CFO seat, sat across the table from buyers, worked inside private equity, built advisory relationships over years, and then built a firm of their own.
Ben has done all of that. When he talks about what drives business valuation, he is drawing on deals he has been part of. When he talks about what due diligence looks like from the buyer's side, he knows because he has been on that side. When he helps a business owner build a 12-month cash flow model, he is not working from theory.
That experience is the reason LiNQ Ventures exists, and it is the credential that matters most.
A Note on AI
Ben's perspective on AI for business owners is worth explaining directly, because it shapes how LiNQ approaches this area.
When AI tools started becoming accessible to small businesses, Ben's initial reaction was the same one he hears from a lot of owners: what is this, and do I actually need to pay attention to it? He answered that question by diving in, testing tools, understanding what they could and could not do, and building practical workflows into his own business before advising anyone else to do the same.
That experience made him a more useful guide. He is not evangelizing AI from the outside. He has lived the learning curve, made the mistakes, found the tools worth using, and can help business owners skip the part where they waste time and money figuring it out themselves.
Working with Ben
LiNQ Ventures is intentionally a close-in advisory practice. Ben works directly with each client. The work is not handed off to a junior team or templated into a standardized process. Every engagement starts with understanding where the owner actually is and where they want to go.
If you are a business owner in Florida looking for senior financial leadership, trying to figure out how AI fits into your operations, or preparing the business for a change in leadership or ownership, the best starting point is a direct conversation.
Ben Wagner is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of LiNQ Ventures, LLC, based in Sarasota, Florida. He is a 40 Under 40 honoree recognized by The Observer Group and a CFO of the Year recipient from the Business Journal.
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