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Welcome to IAPA’s Quarterly newsletter

Q3, September 2018

2016

IAPA - A global association of independent accountancy, law and business advisory firms

Established in 1979 No. 11 global accounting association

184 member firms 67 countries 311 offices 758 partners

DISPATCHWORK IAPA’s quarterly news publication containing news

and information for Members of IAPA

Creating the fabric of a global society

Global Support.

Local Knowledge.

IAPA Social

Words from the Global

Chairman

another successful week meeting all

our Canadian members plus our

member in Detroit. We visited our

Canadian member offices in Hamilton

and our two member firm offices in

Toronto, plus we attended and

presented at the BHD conference at

Niagara-on-the-Lake. The BHD

conference was an exceptionally good

event and I learnt that BHD is a very

strong and close association of

Canadian members and I am so pleased

we have them as IAPA members.

In Canada we also had numerous other

meetings including one with Caseware

at their head office in Toronto. There

will be more news regarding our new

relationship with Caseware in due

course.

In early November we have IAPA’s

International Conference in Miami,

along with the IAPA regional US and

Latin American events. There is a lot of

excitement about our 2018 flagship

conference as we have fantastic

external speakers and internal IAPA

specialists delivering on technical and

thought leadership topics.

All speakers have been carefully

Dear Members,

I am very proud to write this note as

your Global Chairman. I am also very

pleased with the way Ozgur has

performed in his first few months as

our new CEO. He works so hard and

he has a strong desire to grow IAPA

from the solid foundations all our

members have already built.

At the end of July Ozgur, Janice my

wife and I visited all our members in

New York and New Jersey. From my

perspective it was a highly successful

visit. It was a pleasure to meet all our

New York and New Jersey members

in their offices plus it was good to

spend some quality time with Ozgur.

We have some great US members

who are not only technically brilliant

but also very commercially strategic.

The visit made me more confident

about the future of IAPA when I

reflect on the quality of members we

have and the way Ozgur

communicated and worked with our

members on that trip.

I am writing this note at Toronto

airport whilst waiting for my flight

back to London. Ozgur, Janice and I

have just finished a busy but again

Still time to register for Rio…

IAPA International Conference

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

23-26 October 2016

Visit the IAPA Portal for full details

selected to give our members a

fresh perspective on the latest

international developments in the

fields of tax, business, law and

corporate finance as well as ideas

to inspire and challenge us as we

look into the future.

Members will undoubtedly learn

something new to take back to

their businesses, to advance their

firms, enhance their services and

ultimately better support their

clients. On top of this we have a

fantastic location for our

conference at the Fontainebleau

Hotel, Miami beach. The hotel

hosted the US regional conference

last year and I can vouch it is truly a

wonderful venue. The Miami

International IAPA conference will

be a great event and if you have

not already registered please do so

as quickly as you can.

Two weeks after the Miami

conference I am very much looking

forward to attending and

presenting at the annual

UK200Group conference in

Scotland. Continued…

IAPA International 2018 Conference, Miami

2-5 November, The Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel

Have you booked your place yet?

Register via the IAPA members’ portal @www.iapa.net

IAPA CEO welcome

Who’s Who @ IAPA

International Board

John

Campbell

Vice-Chairman, Treasurer and Canadian Representative

Martin Clapson

Global

Chairman

Scott Minnig

US Regional Chair

Neal Morrison EMEA Regional Chair

Ramon

Gonzalez

Latin-American Regional Chair

Mohd Noor Abu

Bakar

Asia-Pacific Regional Chair

Ozgur

Demirdoven

IAPA CEO

Dear Members,

I trust you all had a fantastic Summer break. For me it has been a rollercoaster as

I have enjoyed the summer months travelling extensively and primarily to meet

new, existing and potential IAPA members. On top of this it has been a pleasure

to meet potential sponsors and keynote speakers for our upcoming conferences.

It has been a wonderful experience as a new CEO to visit so many member firms

and to get to know the partners and staff on an individual, personal level. I plan

to visit as many member firms as possible over the next 12 months and this was

the start of my new campaign. All my visits are highlighted later on in this

newsletter, along with IAPA’s first US Mission which took me to New York and

New Jersey for 5 days with the IAPA Chairman, Martin Clapson.

And great things have already come from these travels; understanding what

specific niche areas each member firm offers, how to better connect members

globally using focused talents, learning how firms can help grow IAPA and in turn

create greater business opportunities within the organization and developing

alliances with new strategic partners…amongst others! I have been truly inspired

and a lot of this will be reflected in our flagship conference this year – IAPA’s

2018 International Conference, Miami be that in speakers, new forums, ideas for

how IAPA will develop over the next 12 months and new sponsors.

our International 2019 Conference in

Singapore.

Finally, I would particularly like to

welcome our newest members to the

association: Adel Law Office, Turkey,

GoAudit, Denmark and Mullany

Walsh Maxwells, Dublin. It is great to

have you on board.

Thank you for your support.

Martin Clapson

IAPA Global Chairman

Martin

The UK200Group annual conferences are

always excellent so please do register

and join us. It is a wonderful opportunity

to meet not only UK200Group members

but also some international members

who regularly attend.

I hope you agree that IAPA continues to

provide thought provoking events,

fantastic learning experiences, essential

contacts and networking opportunities

throughout the year. You will find a list

of upcoming events for 2019 at the end

of this newsletter – please do mark the

dates in the diary as we look forward to

celebrating 40 years of IAPA next year at

It was a great privilege to be there and we were spoiled

by proverbial Canadian hospitality. I spent an amazing

time in the Niagara area, visited vineyards with our

members and I can clearly say that those fertile lands are

a gift to our Canadian friends, especially their “Icewine”

is clearly a miracle.

Each of our members is like a drop of “Icewine”, where

one drop comes from each grape. Finally we also had the

chance to visit 3 Canadian Member offices during our

mission, and signed a deal with CaseWare Analytics to

provide the best deal to our members on their data

analytics program IDEA. We are working on the Working

Paper side and will update you when it is done.

I look forward to seeing many of you in Miami. We have

exciting times ahead of us and this will be a wonderful

event to celebrate all that we have achieved over the

last 12 months as well as be inspired and motivated for

the future – be that through potential business

development within IAPA or thought provoking

discussions on the shape of tomorrow’s world and the

challenges facing the professions (accounting, business

advisory and law firms). If you haven’t registered yet,

please do so now and take a look at the fantastic

programme this conference will offer you.

Please do not hesitate to be in touch should you have

any queries directly with me either from my mail

account: ozgur.demirdoven@iapa.net or at the IAPA

HQ in Farnham, UK: +44 (0)1252 267880.

Please don’t forget; “This is your organization - This is

our organization – IAPA is stronger with you!”

H. Ozgur Demirdoven

IAPA CEO

Ozgur

As we embrace transformation in the industry, IAPA must

also evolve to echo these changes and it has been a

pleasure to discuss this with so many of you. The Centre

has also been working to reflect our new, dynamic image

for the ‘IAPA of the future’ in terms of a fresh, bright new

look for our website and incorporating this new image

across all our promotional materials and social media

platforms. Watch this space – the new look will be

revealed later this year.

I am pleased to say I have just conducted a second, highly

effective Mission to Canada and US at the beginning of

September with our International Chairman Martin and

his wife Janice. Following our first trip to the US in July,

we have now covered New York, New Jersey and the

Michigan states during our 2 US Missions. We visited all

member offices, listened to them and have come away

with a lot of takeaways and action plans.

Exciting times and yes we will be growing in the States

and we are designing our plan of executing it. It will be in

our way, it will be in the IAPA way! Then we attended our

Canadian National Accounting Group BHD’s Annual

Conference on Niagara-On-The-Lake. I had a chance to

present to all of our Canadian members.

IAPA CEO welcome

IAPA International Conference

2-5 November 2018, Miami USA

The Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel

The IAPA International Conference, Miami is set to be a

fantastic event with the theme based on the future, how

to evolve as a professional services firm and how IAPA

will develop to better suit its members’ needs

incorporating truly fascinating talks by keynote speakers

that aim to inspire us in our work practice and lives in

general.

Set in the beautiful Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel,

delegates and guests will be able to network, learn from

each other and develop global business opportunities in

a wonderful, relaxed environment.

If you haven’t already registered, please do so via the

IAPA members’ portal.

This year we are delighted to initiate a new Corporate

Finance and Legal Forum. We also welcome a new Audit

and Blockchain session, a FinTech session as well as an

interactive workshop on How to Coach Business Adivsors

to Success.

Hotel Fontainebleau Miami Beach

In addition to our technical forums we are delighted to

welcome to Miami Dr James Bellini, a leading

futurologist who takes audiences on a journey through

the next 20 years of business and beyond, provoking

discussion around strategies facing current and future

management, with a particular focus on trends up to

Horizon 2025. We are also pleased to welcome Michael

Yormark, President & Chief of Branding & Strategy For

Roc Nation.

The IAPA US Regional Conference and Latin American

Regional Conference will also take place in Miami, being

hosted at the Miami based IAPA firm Gerson, Preston,

Klein, Lips, Eisenberg & Gelber P.A. Many thanks to the

firm who have also helped organise the social element

of the International Conference and secure the use of

the fabulous Fontainebleau Hotel.

To register visit the IAPA members’ portal

@www.iapa.net or get in touch with the Centre directly

and email Joy: j.lord@iapa.net.

What is the value of IAPA Conferences?

Feedback from delegates always states the greatest value

of IAPA events is forming fantastic

relationships/friendships with IAPA members, global

networking, learning from each other, understanding

global cultures and how to best meet the needs of

national and international clients.

We are delighted our events are so successful in this

respect and along with our external speakers and

specialist technical forums we trust you will all have an

inspiring experience, creating stronger global business

connections for future business opportunities.

We look forward to seeing you in Miami

Managing and Motivating Accounting

Professionals

By Lisa Tierney, Tierney Coaching & Consulting, Inc.

I interviewed professionals in charge of human resources at reputable accounting firms to find out how they

successfully manage and motivate accounting professionals. I’m confident that if you read on, you’ll learn a thing or

two.

There are important differences between a review process

and an incentive compensation program. Most of the

human resources professionals I spoke with agree: reviews

are about an individual’s performance around their work

product, while incentive compensation programs address

long-range career opportunities as well as their alignment

with the firm’s overall objectives and core values.

Jill Sheetz, PHR, firm administrator at Pritchard Bieler, Gruver & Wilson, P.C. noted the difference.

“The review process tells our staff what they’ve

accomplished during the year and where they (and

management) see them going in the future, particularly in

the coming year,” she said. “It summarizes shortcomings

and strengths. The incentive compensation program is

their guide map for their future at the firm and to clearly

define what management sees as the priority

achievements for each staff person.”

Ranking the Benefits of Implementing an Incentive Compensation Program

When asked about the main objectives for implementing

an incentive compensation program, our HR professionals

agreed that a main objective was to help individual

professional’s define their path at the firm over the long-

term. The HR professionals ranked a short list of benefits

for the implementation of an incentive compensation

program, as follows:

Define a professional’s career path at the firm

Develop overall talent of professionals

Increase employee engagement

Decisions about bonuses / salary increases

Improve technical skills of staff

Who Should Review and Evaluate Whom, and How?

The types of reviews that are being conducted differ from

firm to firm. Most accounting firms are conducting top

down reviews, with supervisors reviewing

subordinates. In some cases, senior

managers are asked to serve as a liaison

down reviews, with supervisors reviewing

subordinates. In some cases, senior managers are

asked to serve as a liaison between shareholders and

associates, since shareholders have not, in many

cases, had direct experience in working with them.

Some firms are also offering voluntary 360-degree

review processes for those who wish to participate.

Amanda Cline, human resources manager at E. Cohen

& Company CPAs, noted,

“Some 360-degree reviewers are asked to remain

anonymous. The risk is that anonymity could allow for

vindictive criticism and leave the employee being

reviewed feel “under attack.”

Jill Sheetz agrees. “If the employee isn’t comfortable

with giving honest feedback (positive or negative)

about their supervisor, the information can do more

harm than good,” she said.

Human Resource professionals agree that an

important objective is that professionals are reviewed

by those with whom they have worked closely and

who can provide honest, objective feedback on their

performance, with constructive suggestions around

areas for improvement.

Marla Martin, AAAPM, human resources manager for

Weber O'Brien Ltd., advised, “As HR manager, I

personally make a recommendation to the members

who should prepare evaluations for each person. The

recommendations are based on who has worked the

most with the evaluatee and also ensuring that one

principal member is present during the evaluation.”

All of the HR professionals I spoke with agree that

reviews and evaluations should be conducted in

person, with an HR professional present to take notes.

In most cases, professionals are given either a

document to review or have some form of

interim “unofficial” review conversation.

document to review or have some form of interim

“unofficial” review conversation. All of the HR

professionals also strongly support informal meetings

regarding performance throughout the year, i.e. after

engagements or project work.

No one should be caught off guard or totally surprised

at review / bonus time.

What are the biggest challenges in managing these

types of performance evaluation programs?

Time: “The time commitment necessary to truly

evaluate each staff’s performance and provide

comments and guidance for their future development is

often times usurped by the financial raise process

itself,” said Marla Martin.

Complexity: Amanda Cline pointed out that “…many

incentive compensation plans include multiple

performance measurements as well as award types

(e.g., short-term bonuses, long-term incentives, stock-

based incentives, organizational awards) and target

levels.

Uniformity: Comparisons drawn from such a subjective

process are always difficult to manage, noted Jill Sheetz.

Incentive rewards: Incentives should appropriately

reflect the objectives and goals achieved, as outlined

during the review process. As discussed in “Incentive

Pay: Creating a Competitive Advantage,” published by

World at Work Press, “If mediocre employees are given

an average merit increase, they will perceive that their

performance is adequate. Conversely, if excellent

performers only receive a little more in incentive pay

than average performers, they will perceive that the

company does not value their performance.”

Failure to get buy-in from the top: Jill Sheetz said,

“Unfortunately for the staff, this task is generally looked

at by our supervisors in the same light that the general

taxes. It seems to be a dreaded necessity. However, if

communication is good throughout the year, thoughts

should flow onto the evaluation and the hard

discussions (if any) should have already been had.“

population view going to the dentist or doing their taxes. It

seems to be a dreaded necessity. However, if

communication is good throughout the year, thoughts

should flow onto the evaluation and the hard discussions

(if any) should have already been had.“

A comprehensive solution is needed for successful

management and motivation of professionals. Forward-

thinking human resources professionals are making great

strides in the area of creating a multifaceted approach

around managing and motivating professional services

providers. There is a strong desire to develop professionals

in a wide array of areas. This ensures a well-rounded firm

with the abilities and knowledge necessary to provide top

notch services to their clientele.

It is no longer acceptable to distribute rewards—monetary

or otherwise—based on technical merit alone or billable

hours. Human resource professionals are advising firms to

adopt a unified approach to addressing the multiple

aspects of all that makes up a “successful” professional

services firm.

Jill Sheetz explained, “We have revamped our review

process this year and are looking at the incentive

compensation program as part of that process. We have

communicated clearly defined expectations by staff level,

which allows all firm members to know why they are at a

particular level and what they need to do to get to the next

level. This assists in employee engagement and helps

develop the overall talent in the firm. Ideally, the

importance of this process should be reflected in the

shareholders’ pay/bonus structure.”

Managing and Motivating Accounting

Professionals

By Lisa Tierney, Tierney Coaching & Consulting, Inc.

Managing and Motivating Accounting

Professionals

By Lisa Tierney, Tierney Coaching & Consulting, Inc.

Marla Martin offered, “We are revising our evaluation

forms, further attempting to develop one form that not

only makes sense with this generation, but one that

better helps to define their future at the firm. This

includes specialization, CPE, marketing and personal

development matters.”

Craig Single, chief talent officer at Elko & Associates,

illustrates the value of using one comprehensive process

to manage these processes.

Craig has integrated the mentoring, incentive

compensation and review process. Craig said, “It makes

sense to have all of this part of a unified process. I use an

accounting-focused consultant to assist us with the

tabulation and deliverable of the results/data in order to

keep the process easy and less cumbersome for our

staff.”

Jill Sheetz advised, “The program you build to manage

and motivate your professionals needs to address the

firm as a whole and reflect the firm’s strategic planning,

succession planning and knowledge management. Those

designing the program must pay special attention to the

details and fine nuances, such as looking at the

knowledge they might be losing in the coming years

and/or the knowledge needed to grow a particular

desirable area within the firm. The right program can

support all of these important initiatives.”

With advances in technology, there are affordable,

customizable software systems for use at your CPA firm

that can help manage and motivate staff in a way that

reflects the core values at your firm and demonstrates

that there are a multitude of areas that require focus in

order to stay competitive in today’s market. The right

program can educate, enlighten and empower your

professionals on an individual level—and in a way that

supports the overall goals and strategic direction of your

firm.

Lisa Tierney, CLSC, is a certified life strategies coach and

the founder of Tierney Coaching & Consulting, Inc.

Lisa works predominantly with CPA professionals, assisting

accountants in growing their practice, developing

leadership abilities, effectively managing their

relationships and finding graceful exists around succession

planning. Lisa will be facilitating an IAPA Interactive

workshop in Miami and sharing her expertise.

Lisa@CPAMarketingConsultant.com

Kimberley’s corner! Requests from IAPA’s Finance Manager

IAPA – Services Offered

There is a search facility on the IAPA Website/Find-a-firm and on the IAPA Members Portal/Member

Search whereby a search can be made on Services Offered and Industry Sectors. During 2017, the

Industry Sectors were brought up to date and we can now inform the membership that a similar

exercise has been carried out with the Services Offered. There are three new categories that reflect

the new areas that our members are working in:

Business Intelligence

Technology

Cryptocurrency Advisory

Other services entries have now been consolidated so please do log into the IAPA Members Portal and check the

entries for your firm. If you don’t update your information, members may not know your services exist.

L – edit as required.

IAPA news

IAPA Tax Bulletin

IAPA published its fourth Tax Bulletin, July 2018.

This document has been produced in response to member feedback that requested a regular synopsis of any new tax rules / country specific tax updates from jurisdictions around the world, to keep IAPA members and their clients up to date and to offer a key point of contact should any member want to know more.

The July issue contained entries from Nigeria, Singapore, Tanzania and the UK. Thank you to all those that contributed. The next issue will be October 2018.

IAPA Twitter

IAPA webinars: 10 July 2018: Improving the Proposal Process at your Firm

IAPA TUTORIALS

IAPA International Conference 2019

The IAPA 2019 International Conference will take place in Singapore mid-end

November 2019.

Availability of hotels is being investigated as this newsletter goes to press so we

should have dates and exact venue soon… watch this space! IAPA will be 40 years

old in 2019 and we anticipate a very special event in Singapore to celebrate.

Lisa Tierney, an award winning marketing consultant and a certified life

strategies coach, presented an insightful webinar to IAPA attendees sharing key

tips to streamline their firm’s proposal process to make a direct difference in

securing the next client and improving the closing ratio. Attendees were guided

through the top ten areas to focus on and also the common pitfalls to avoid.

Watch the webinar to learn step by step how to secure prospective clients,

IAPA’s twitter handle changed to IAPAIntl to streamline all

IAPA’s communications and stay consistent with the brand

name IAPA International. The Centre is progressing with

more updates to make the IAPA look and feel across all

digital media consistent including a new look for the

website. We will keep you posted .

understand how to effectively solidify your connection with the key decision-makers and demonstrate the value you

and your firm can provide. “Excellent presenter, interesting and relevant content with lots of practical examples which

will definitely add value to our firm.”

All IAPA webinar recordings and slides can be found on the IAPA Portal > IAPA Resources > IAPA Webinars. Do take a

look and if you have any suggestions for furutre topics email Joy Lord - j.lord@iapa.net.

CEO’s member visits

IAPA CEO at the UK200Group

Office with CEO Declan Swan,

Aldershot, UK

Visiting new member firm GoAudit,

Copenhagen, Denmmark

Delighted to welcome Mohammad Shakil

Fakeermahmod, Haines Management

Services Ltd, Mauritius whilst visiting

in Istanbul, Turkey

Confirming the new appointment of

Adel Law Firm, Ankara Turkey

As new IAPA CEO, Ozgur Demirdoven has set out to visit as many longstanding, new and

potential members as possible over the next 12 months to strengthen professional relationships

across the association and develop deeper business connections. Below is a snapshot of visits

over the last 3 months outside of the CEO and Global Chairman’s US Mission.

Visiting Yiakoumi & Partners

Ltd, with Petros Yiakoumi and

his team, Cyprus

IAPA US Mission #1

Earlier in July, IAPA CEO Ozgur Demirdoven and IAPA Chairman Martin Clapson started their first

strategic visit to the US to meet New York and New Jersey based IAPA member firms as well as to

develop new member prospects. With a goal to visit as many member firms as possible within

his his first 12 months as CEO, it was a key location to meet the firms and their staff and

understand how IAPA can further help develop their business opportunities locally, regionally

and internationally.

A lot was learnt about each firm and already ideas have been implemented to utilise the

breadth of in-depth specialist knowledge the members have to offer.

The second stop to North America (US Mission #2) was mid-

September to Michigan, USA and then to greet our

Canadian members in Niagara on the Lake, Canada at the

annual BHD Conference. A great opportunity to meet

another prospective firm and introduce the partners to

IAPA’s Canadian members. Ozgur then made a final visit to

member firms in Toronto right after the conference.

New plans, developments and creative ideas…watch this

space as we update you in our next news bulletin.

In light of rapidly evolving technologies and advancements in the

industry, gaining a perspective on how firms are building their

departments to capitalise on emerging services was insightful and

has enabled IAPA to immediately offer forums and speakers at

events on new topics e.g. Fintech and Cryptocurrency / Crypto

Funds.

Working with IAPA’s longstanding law firms Wilson Elser Moskowitz

Edelman & Dicker LLP and Miller Simons O’Sullivan, the US Mission

cemented plans on how IAPA’s legal firms can work closely with its

accounting and business advisory counterparts – another exciting

initiative that will be showcased at IAPA’s International Conference

in Miami this year.

It was a busy 5 days and fantastic to reunite all IAPA members in the New York and New

Jersey area with a final farewell on the last day of the Mission. Mutual collaboration and

building long-lasting business relationships both locally, regionally and internationally is

what IAPA is all about and it was great to see such energy and enthusiasm amongst these

exceptional firms. In addition, the CEO and Chairman had the chance to meet and talk

with 3 potential sponsors throughout this mission, so it was a very effective roadshow.

Right: Tom Manisero and Peter Larkin

with IAPA CEO and Chairman at the

Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman &

Dicker LLP law firm, NY office.

Above: Norm Schulman with his team at the Schulman

Lobel NY Office

Left: Jeffrey and Michael Getzel with

IAPA CEO and Chairman at the Getzel

Schiff & Pesce LLP office in NY

Above: Final farewell with fellow IAPA NY and NJ members

Above: Maurice Berkower, Michael Mullen and Ashok

Goyal (Berkower’s newest partner) with IAPA CEO

and Chairman at Berkower LLC NJ office

IAPA in the press

To see the full article read here:

https://www.accountingtoday.com/opinion/best-practices-to-expand-your-cpa-firms-reach-globally

http://www.iapa.net

IAPA New Members

IAPA is delighted to welcome the following new members:

Save the date:

IAPA EMEA Regional Conference 2018, Oslo, Norway

25-27 May 2018

Established in 2015 with head

office in Copenhagen and branch

offices in both Esbjerg and

Kolding the firm focuses on

providing bespoke solutions for

their clients within Auditing,

Reporting IFRS/DK GAAP and

consultancy.

Contact Partner:

Mr Jesper Praest Olsen

Email: jpo@goaudit.dk

T: +45 22 89 51 65

GoAudit

Copenhagen, Denmark

Adel Law Office

Ankara, Turkey

Adel Law Office, based in Ankara

with an office in Istanbul is a very

well established firm, set up in

2002, which provides legal and

consultancy services to both local

and international clients including

US, Italy, Iran, Spain, Germany,

Netherlands, Norway, Brazil, UK,

Israel and Kazakhstan. They

provide services in a wide range of

practice areas.

Contact Partner:

Mr Oğuzhan Buhur

Email:

buhur@adelhukuk.com

T: +90 312 418 63 37

www.adelhukuk.com

Mullany Walsh Maxwells

Dublin, Ireland

Mullany Walsh Maxwells, based in

Dublin was set up in 2016 when 3

very well established law firms

merged together. The firm

employs top quality lawyers who

take pride in providing a service

which is as good as, if not better

than, the large law firms. The

firm’s main areas of practice are in

corporate/ commercial, litigation

and property.

Contact Partner:

Mr Conor Mullany

Email: cmullany@mwmlegal.ie T: +353 1 676 0251 www.mwmlegal.ie

News from IAPA member firms:

Dains Praises Benefits of Being a Xero Platinum Partner as Government

Pushes to Make Tax Digital

It can automatically import bank and credit card

statements and support multiple tax rates and

currencies.

All financial data is stored in the cloud on a single ledger,

allowing users to work in the same set of books

regardless of location or operating system.

Michelle Eccleshall, Commercial Services Senior

Manager at Dains, said “Not only does Xero enable us to

offer clients an affordable solution for MTD compliance,

it also allows us to work closely with our clients as we

can access their accounting data anytime, anywhere

from any device.

“The emergence of cloud accounting has added some

amazing cost-effective tools, meaning we can help our

clients in ways previously not possible.

“We want to help clients to choose the best reporting

tools and improve their reporting processes to help

them to work more effectively and efficiently, creating

more capacity within their business. Time to work

smarter, not harder.”

Although Xero is a package aimed at small to medium

businesses, Dains has software specialists for most

accounting packages and business sizes.

They currently have 120 clients using Xero and hope to

convert a further 200 over the next 12 months.

More information about Making Tax Digital can be

found by visiting https://www.dains.com/mtdhub

Dains Accountants has shined a light on the importance

of cloud-based accounting as the Government pushes for

more firms to support its Making Tax Digital initiative.

The scheme is all based around efforts to make sure that

all businesses or individuals who pay tax do so on a digital

platform and, as a result, put an end to paper accounting.

Dains, which has offices across the Midlands, in the UK,

has found that many of the firms it works with have

found that cloud-based accounting packages are proving

to be increasingly popular.

As Dains are cloud accounting specialists, the firm can

help others make the move to digital accounting as

straight forward as possible.

They have a dedicated team to support through the

conversion process to what is an affordable and simple

option.

Dains also enjoys the benefits of being Xero Platinum

Partners. Xero is a cloud-based accounting software

package.

Its features include automatic bank and credit card

account feeds, invoicing, accounts payable, expense

claims, purchase orders and standard business and

management reporting.

Above: Michelle Eccleshall, Alan Ollerenshaw and Laura

Harwood are urging firms to find out more about the support

Dains can offer when it comes to Making Tax Digital.

Stark & Stark CPA is proud to announce the

appointment of their managing partner, Iris Stark,

to the position of President of the Institute of

Certified Public Accountants in Israel

The election took place on 4th September, 2018.

We are very proud of her victory.

Iris is the first woman president of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Israel, which was

established 87 years ago.

Attached a link to the story that was published at GLOBES newspaper:

https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001252756

www.starkcpa.com

Cowgill Holloway expands Manchester base

with new Director of Corporate

Finance appointment

Cowgill Holloway, one of the North West’s leading

accountancy practices, has bolstered its Corporate

Finance team with the appointment of

director, Sam Davies.

Sam (32) joins from Knight Corporate Finance and will

drive Cowgill’s expansion plans as head of the

Manchester arm of Cowgill’s Corporate Finance

division from its base in XYZ, Spinningfields.

Sam brings with him significant experience working

with investors, having recently led deals raising

investment in excess of £20m from Northern Venture

Managers, Yorkshire Fund Managers, Maven and

Lloyds Development Capital. The wider Cowgill

Holloway Corporate Finance team has completed in

excess £100m of deal value in the last 24 months.

Above: L-R Paul Stringer head of corporate

finance, Sam Davies director, Ian Johnson corporate

finance partner.

From its head office in Bolton, Cowgill’s is driving forward

with ambitious expansion plans and growing corporate

finance from Manchester is a key part of the firm’s growth

strategy.

Commenting on his appointment Sam said: “Manchester is

at the centre of the regional M&A market, with over 30

private equity firms based in the city, so it makes sense for

us to grow our existing corporate finance business from

here. Developing our team in the heart of the city is an

exciting challenge and, with a buoyant market, the time is

right to capitalise on this.”

He continues: “Cowgill’s is a well-established and highly

respected accountancy practice with a long track record of

excellence, and looking to the future, in order to recruit and

retain the best talent, we know that we need to build our

city centre base further.”

Head of Corporate Finance, Ian Johnson, said: “We are

delighted to have recruited Sam who is a real coup for us.

He joins a growing team of directors across the business

who are instrumental in delivering our growth

plans. Sam fits perfectly with our entrepreneurial ethos and

there was an obvious synergy between us from our first

meeting.”

Cowgill’s has plans for further strategic appointments in the

next few months.

https://www.cowgills.co.uk/

10-Year Visa: Boost to Dubai’s Start-Up Scene

With the proposed introduction of the

10-year visa the Dubai Government has

confirmed its stance for greater

innovation in both regulation and

technology. And though start-ups can

anticipate further positive

developments, this is definitely the first

step in enabling start-ups to forge an

entrepreneurial sprit and drive growth.

Most businesses await a positive return

on investment to signal a positive

upward growth.

On the other hand raising investments

for an uninterrupted flow of funds is as

important though time consuming.

The proposed new 10-year visa rule

helps on both these fronts providing

time to prove competence and ability,

and create new investors along with a

chance to align their practices and

profits.

For start-ups at least three years are

needed to raise the first $1 Million

and then at least two to three more

to strengthen their position and move

ahead.

This period is a crucial stage of

establishing themselves and the new

rule provides the necessary breathing

space, thus helping build businesses

and creating new job opportunities.

Additionally it will also align basic

legal requirements resulting in

transparency, guaranteed investor

participation and preventing chances

of frauds.

The MENA territory has over 3,000

start-ups with the last few years

seeing several raise more than $1

billion thus putting the UAE start-up

sector on the global commerce fore

front.

With other countries providing

start-up visas typically for a 5-

year period, Dubai stands to be

the preferred start-up destination

in the Middle East, bringing more

entrepreneurs to its fold in

increasing innovation and

change. This is an opportunity no

start-up can resist

http://www.kothariauditors.com

Our Journey to Success:

Alaziq & Alzailaie CPA, Saudi Arabia

Small CPA companies have been known for huge

industry change as compared to large CPA companies

because small companies are often more agile and

innovative, with fewer deep-rooted traditions and

processes getting in their way. Ibrahim Al Aziq,

Managing Partner of Alaziq CPA has recently merged

with Huda Al Zailiea CPA to form Alaziq & Alzailaie CPA.

Being a professional firm of Accountants based in Saudi

Arabia with offices in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. We

have been devoting ourselves in providing top quality

services to our clients and have extended our core

business of Audit and Taxation to include Business

Transformation consulting including Policies &

Procedure, Internal Audit and expertise in ERP systems

like SAP, Oracle as well as mid-range systems.

Alaziq & Alzailaie CPA’s differentiators are embrace of

latest Cloud Based technology and alliances. Starting

out, Mr. Ibrahim Alaziq & Huda Alzailaie knew that AAZ

needed to do things differently to compete with larger

firms that had more resources. The firm got IAPA

membership with the fruitful efforts of our Director

Consulting, Mr. Mobin Karamat – a big deal in 2017 –

confirmed our presence in some 70 countries.

Being a Compliance Bridge partner since 2017, we are

extending the breadth and depth of their solutions for

our customers in the Middle East. Together, we ensure

that organizations of any size, industry and location can

effectively manage their policies and procedures and

routinely assess risk.

The ACCA recognized Alaziq’ Alzailaie CPA’s high

standards of staff training and development in April

2018. To ensure under this program that we have the

right skills, ethics and competences to add value and

drive business.

ACCA awarded us Approved Employer status under the

Professional Development stream means that ACCA

recognizes the learning opportunities Alaziq & Alzailaie

CPA provides for ACCA members to support their

continuing professional development (CPD).

Professional Development approval gives us access to the

Approved Employer CPD route, meaning we follow a

simplified process for fulfilling our annual CPD requirement.

As part of this continued professional development, we

follow a defined program of keeping our members up to

date with technical expertise.

Kyriba has become alliance partner of Alaziq & Alzailaie CPA

in 2018 with the efforts and far-sighted vison of our

Consulting Director Mobin Karamat. Kyriba is the global

leader in cloud Treasury management. With Kyriba, we

streamline key processes, enhance fraud protection and

compliance, and drive more growth opportunities through

improved decision support and forecasting.

During 2018 EMEA, IAPA AGM, Mr. Mobin Karamat,

Director Consulting of Alaziq & Alzailaie CPA has been

appointed as IAPA EMEA Board member. Our aim is to bring

our expertise to IAPA and help business and members to

assist in all ways we can.

Our cosmopolitan team of professionals and affiliates come

from UK, Pakistan, Jordan, Egypt, Palestine and Saudi

Arabia. As part of continued professional development, we

follow a defined program of keeping our members up to

date with technical expertise. Our clients include Saudi

Government, Private sector companies, Partnerships and

Individual businesses.

Both Ibrahim Alaziq and Huda Al Zailaie have new

perspective on leadership, goals, strategy a passion for

innovation in order to succeed. Each is building a flourishing

CPA firm. Together, they are leading industry change.

http://www.ihacpa.com

New restriction on foreign currency-denominated or indexed contracts:

Turkey requires certain contracts between Turkish residents to be valued in Turkish Lira

Latest developments in Turkey

On 13 September 2018, the Turkish Presidential Decree

No. 85 (the “Decree No. 85”) amending the Decree No.

32 on the Protection of the Value of the Turkish

Currency (the “Decree No. 32”) was published in the

Official Gazette and introduced new restrictions on

certain contracts between Turkish residents, requiring

the contract price and other payment obligations arising

from the below contracts not to be denominated in, or

indexed to, foreign currency:

The sale and purchase of any movable and

immovable property;

Leasing of any movable and immovable property

including vehicle and financial leasing;

Employment/service contracts; and

Contracts of work, including construction contracts.

Save for circumstances to be determined by the Ministry

of Treasury and Finance (the “Ministry”), existing

contracts which fall within the scope of the Decree No.

85 must be redenominated by the parties in Turkish Lira

within 30 days of the effective date of the Decree No. 85

(October 13, 2018).

As of the date of this note, the Ministry has clarified that

(i) this recent restriction only applies when both parties

of a contract are Turkish residents, which cover, among

others, Turkish companies with foreign capital and

foreign individuals deemed domiciled in Turkey, (ii)

contracts that are to be redenominated in Turkish Lira

are those between individuals and/or legal entities that

were both Turkish residents at the time the contract was

entered into, and (iii) while setting forth exceptions to

the requirements introduced under the Decree No. 85,

foreign currency denominated revenues, costs and

liabilities of the parties will be taken into account, in

parallel with the provisions of the Decree No 32, which

set out certain eligibility requirements for Turkish

residents to be able to obtain foreign currency

denominated loans.

FX-losses deferred to 2023 under the new

Communiqué on technical bankruptcy rules

The Communiqué on Procedures and Principles on

Implementation of Article 376 of the Turkish Commercial

Code No. 6102 (the "TCC") was published in the Official

Gazette on September 15, 2018. Article 376 of the TCC

governs mandatory remedial measures in case of capital loss

and insolvency of Turkish companies.

The new communiqué is in response to an increasing

number of companies suffering from significant capital

losses resulting from the depreciation of the Turkish Lira.

The new communiqué allows, as an interim measure

effective until January 1, 2023, foreign exchange losses

arising from outstanding foreign currency denominated

liabilities, which are not yet performed (e.g., loans not

repaid), not to be factored into capital adequacy and

insolvency tests under Article 376.

BRSA eases restrictions applicable to currency swaps

As a follow up to our previous alert, the Turkish Banking

Regulation and Supervision Agency (“BRSA”) has lowered

the restrictions on currency swaps of Turkish banks made

with non-Turkish residents. The BRSA had previously limited

the swap transactions to 25% of the equity of the banks

concerned. The BRSA announced on September 17 that

foreign currency swaps with a maturity of between 90 and

360 days may amount up to 75% of the equity of banks, and

those with maturity longer than 360 days may amount to a

maximum of 50% of the equity.

Turkish banks agree to help businesses in loan

restructuring

Following, and pursuant to, the BRSA Regulation on

Restructuring of Debts Owed to Financial Sectors

numbered 30510 published in the Official Gazette dated

August 15, 2018 (the “Regulation"), Turkey’s Banking

Association (the “TBA”) prepared a framework agreement

which Turkish banks and financial institutions signed on

September 11, 2018 (the “Framework Agreement”).

The Framework Agreement sets out the terms and

conditions applicable to refinancing and/or restructuring

of debts payable to banks, financial leasing, factoring and

financing companies, aiming to help businesses having

difficulty in debt servicing, and includes material terms

and conditions relating to the financial restructuring;

eligibility criteria which must be met by the borrowers;

scope and value thresholds of receivables to be

restructured; main obligations of the parties concerned;

events of default under the framework agreement;

termination events and effects under individual

restructuring agreements; and material elements to be

included in and the scope of obligations to be governed

by the restructuring agreement.

Implementation of the Framework Agreement depends

on the subsequent execution of agreements to be signed

with borrowers whose debts are restructured. In order to

be valid, such restructuring agreements must be executed

within two years of the approval of the relevant

Framework Agreement by the BRSA.

Debtors who demand a restructuring will be subjected to

an assessment to make sure that they will regain the

ability to repay the outstanding debt after such

restructuring or repayment plan. Those who are assessed

to be unfit to pay their debts upon restructuring or

repayment plan shall not be eligible for a restructuring.

This assessment will be made by an independent

institution specified under the Framework Agreement

and approved by the BRSA. Approval by two thirds of

creditor institutions is sufficient for the restructuring of

the outstanding debts of a borrower, which will force all

creditors to agree to restructure the debts concerned.

According to the Framework Agreement, only borrowers

whose principal of the debt (cash and non-cash) is –at the

time of application for a restructuring- greater than 100

million Turkish Liras (US$15.9 million ) will be eligible for a

financial restructuring. Debtors within a risk group may

take part in a restructuring as a whole or partially.

In its statement on September 19, 2018, the TBA

announced that banks and financial institutions that have

signed the agreement account for 90 percent of the

outstanding loans, with the remainder expected to sign

shortly.

Central Bank of Turkey Monitoring FX Positions With a recent amendment to the Regulation on

Procedures and Principles of Central Bank of Turkey’s

Monitoring of Transactions that Impact Foreign Currency

Positions, Central Bank of Turkey started monitoring the

foreign currency positions of metropolitan municipalities,

municipalities, public economic enterprises and

universities.

New Economic Plan The Treasury and Finance Minister, Berat Albayrak,

announced the New Economic Plan on September 20,

2018, which was subsequently published in the Official

Gazette on September 21, 2018. The New Economic Plan

will be in effect for the three year-period covering 2019-

2021. Berat Albayrak explained that the program is based

on three foundations: balance, discipline and shift.

The Turkish authorities are planning to save 60 Billion TL

(1.3% of the GDP) in 2019 by taking certain precautions

(the Minister declared that the GDP growth in 2018 is

expected to be 3.8%, 2.3% in 2019, 3.5% in 2020 and 5.0%

in 2021). In order to cut imports and increase exports, the

Turkish government plans to boost development and

production in most import-intense sectors, such as

pharmaceuticals, energy, petrochemicals, machinery and

equipment, and software sectors.

Two million new jobs will be created by the end of 2021,

with an unemployment rate target of 10.8% in 2021.

It has become easier to become a Turkish

citizen

A recent regulation published in the Official

Latest developments in Turkey

Latest developments in Turkey

The New Economic Plan devotes a section for

"restructuring financial debts", which includes plans to

restructure Turkey's Development Bank and to expand

Turkish Eximbank funding, as the public sector is to

undertake the debts of commercial banks as well as the

private sector to some degree.

It has become easier to become a Turkish citizen

A recent regulation published in the Official Gazette on

September 21, 2018 introduced amendments to the

requirements to acquire Turkish citizenship. First, the

fixed capital investment limit, which was previously

US$2 million, has been reduced to US$500,000.

Also, foreigners who purchase real estate worth

US$250,000 may now obtain citizenship. The monetary

amount used to be US$1 million. For those foreigners

who are eligible for Turkish citizenship because they

have contributed to job creation, the requirement has

been decreased from 100 employees to 50 employees.

The amount of money required to be deposited into a

Turkish bank for at least three years has been reduced

from a minimum of US$3 million to US$500,000.

http://www.medymm.com.tr/

MEET CHARLES SCERRI & ASSOCIATES

At Charles Scerri & Associates we started off as a small Accounting and Audit office and over the years we have established a multi-disciplinary leading service provider. The approachable philosophy of the firm resulted in an ever increasing portfolio of clients, both local and foreign, spanning in multiple industries. The office can provide one-stop-shop services including

Accounting Services & Payroll Bureau

Audit & Assurance

Taxation and Compliance

Corporate Services & Company Set up

Advisory & Consultancy

Trust & Fiduciary Services

Legal & Consulting Services

Banking

Maritime & Aviation

Licensing

Residency and Immigration

Fintech & DLT related Services

“At CSA we provide personal attention to each and every

client. We take pride in the clients’ success and try to

combine professional knowledge, integrity and

entrepreneurial approach to their needs”

E-mail: charles@charlesscerri.com

Mr. Charles Scerri

Managing Director

MALTA – THE BLOCKCHAIN ISLAND

Malta is positioning itself as a leading and friendly

jurisdiction in the prominent industry of distributed ledger

technologies (“DLT”) by offering its reputable and tax

efficient eco-system to support this emerging sector.

From February 2017, when the government started to

promote a national blockchain strategy, Malta has gone a

long way. Three Bills have been approved by the

Parliament and enacted into law to adopt a

comprehensive regulatory framework which not only

provides for various methods of recognition extended to

varied types of innovative technology arrangements and

innovative technology services but also ensures investor

protection, integrity and stability to the financial market. A

number of secondary acts and guidelines are also being

issued to provide for more granularly regulation.

Owned to the above, Malta has attired the attention of the

biggest blockchain names. Binance, OKEx, Neufund, Bitbay

etc have already settled down in the island and others

have announced their intention to make the move under

the umbrella of a regime that is equipped to set the

standards.

A HOLISTIC LEGAL FRAMEWORK

A number of jurisdictions have worked, during the last

few years, to regulate the DLT related businesses.

However, even the most active jurisdictions such as

Singapore, Switzerland, Estonia or Gibraltar, have been

mainly focused on blockchain based cryptocurrencies

and initial coin offering without embracing the sector in

its entire extend. Malta has accepted the challenge and

made the first-mover step.

The milestones of the Maltese DLT and virtual financial

assets regime gear toward the development of the

innovative technology sector, by:

1. Establishing an ad hoc Authority to address the

issues and to focus on the technology arrangements

and their use cases to promote government policies,

educate and facilitate the advancement and

utilisation of innovative technology in use cases

(Malta Digital Innovation Authority Act “MDIA” - Act

No. XXXI of 2018);

2. Setting up a voluntary regime for the registration of

technology service providers and certification of DLT

Platforms (Innovative Technology Arrangements and

Services Act - Act No. XXXIII of 2018)

3. Providing for a mandatory regime to regulate the

initial offering of DLT assets, VFA Agents, and VFA

Service Providers.

Pursuant to the aforementioned acts, MDIA will ensure

that only the software architectures that meet certain

requirements concerning system security, integrity,

transparency and auditability will make their way

toward the seal of quality, while Malta Financial Services

Authority, the single regulator for financial services

activities in Malta, is granted with the power to regulate

and supervise initial issuance of DLT assets (ex.: ICO,

token generation events or similar) and the operation of

license holders (ex.: brokers, advisors, exchanges etc).

OUR FINTECH AND DLT RELATED

SERVICES

At Charles Scerri & Associates we strongly believe that

innovative technology is the future: DLT, Blockchain,

FinTech, AI, internet of things are going to revolute our

society and our way of doing business. As a firm we have

already set up a number of structures that will operate

innovative technology arrangements and our staff is

being trained to provide an excellent service.

Conscious of high level standards and expertise required,

implacable KYC, AML on-boarding and monitoring

procedures, and our own 20 years reputation on stake,

we are entrusting the task to drive us toward new

achievements to a team of highly qualified staff under a

separate department.

http://www.charlesscerri.com

Further, Charles Scerri & Associates has partnered with an international

engineering company, and we are preparing ourselves to be among the first

licensed entities to offer a full list of services to businesses operating in the

digital and innovative technologies market and virtual financial assets

market.

As soon as the regulatory unit becomes fully operative under the new

framework, Charles Scerri & Associates is going to apply for the license that

enables the firm to act as VFA Agent and provide advisory services and

assistance in relation to application for various types of licenses under VFA

Act, drafting of related documents & agreements, drafting and endorsing of

whitepapers and financial instruments test.

The partnership with highly experienced innovative technology engineers

will consent the firm to act as system auditor of DLT arrangements, smart

contracts and other innovative technologies and provide MDIA with related

system assurance as well as assist the client through certification process.

While this article provides an overview of some of the main services we provide, should you have any queries, questions or simply want to find out more about Maltese jurisdiction or our firm, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Dr. Malvina Mulliri

Position: Manager of Fintech

& DLT Department

Areas of practice: business

law, corporate services, trust

and fiduciary services, DLT &

VFA regulation advisor.

E-mail:

malvina@charlesscerri.com

November 2018

IAPA International Conference 2018, 2-5 November Miami, USA Incorporating IAPA US Regional Conference 2018 and IAPA Latin American Regional Conference 2018

UK200Group Conference, 14-16 November Edinburgh, Scotland

January 2019

How to Deliver a Strategic Planning Workshop, 30 January Hosted by James Mason, Mindshop

February 2019

How to Ask Powerful Questions as an Advisor, 27 February Hosted by James Mason, Mindshop

March 2019

IAPA Asia Pacific Regional Conference 2019, 8-9 March Colombo, Sri Lanka

May 2019

IAPA EMEA Regional Conference 2019 Mallorca, Spain

June 2019

IAPA US Regional Conference 2019 New York, USA

November 2019

IAPA International Conference 2019 Singapore

IAPA future conferences, events and webinars 2018/2019