Audit company targeting Japanese firms locating in PH

LOCAL accounting firm Ramon F. Garcia and Co. (RFG) expects more Japanese small and medium enterprises to move to the Philippines due to the country’s improving economic prospects.

At the same time, RFG said that political tensions between Japan and China would also cause some firms from the latter to move their operations to a friendlier environment like the Philippines.

Because of this, RFG—a member firm of global accounting network Crowe Horwath International—has partnered with Japanese firm Yusei Audit and Co.

“We are excited to be teaming up with one of Japan’s best accounting firms to further contribute to the Philippines’ steadily strengthening business clime,” RFG managing partner Ramon Garcia said in an interview.

He explained that, based on his interaction with the RFG’s existing clients, more Japanese firms involved in high-value services like technology and design were eager to migrate their operations to the Philippines.

As such, RFG’s partnership with Yusei Audit—through the setting up of a Japan desk manned by Japanese national—would help the firm take advantage of this expected trend.

“This is a strategic partnership that will strengthen our ties with Japan, and in the process, solidify our current position as one of Asia’s most attractive destinations for business,” said Garcia, who is also RFG’s founding partner.

“The Japanese desk here [ headed by a certified public accountant] will be Crowe Horwath International’s marketing services arm in the Philippines,” he reveals. “Its local presence will enable us to properly service Japanese enterprises in the country, thus increasing our efficiency and making our services more accessible to these companies by breaking down cultural and language barriers between our Philippine and Japanese clients.”

RFG was founded by Garcia in 1981 to offer professional consultancy services in the fields of audit, finance, information technology, taxation, accounting, corporate rehabilitation, human resource development, marketing and other business-related activities.

As a member of Crowe Horwath International, the firm joins more than 150 independent accounting and advisory services firms from more than 100 countries worldwide to offer business consulting practices.

Yusei Audit, meanwhile, has expertise in accounting, company law and taxation.

“Japanese companies seeking to enter Asian markets—or foreign companies attempting to penetrate Japan, for that matter—face challenges that Crowe Horwath understands very well,” Yusei Auditmanaging partner Yoshitaka Kato said in a statement.

“Launching the Japanese desk in partnership with RFG will enable us to address these challenges and contribute to each business entity’s success in the Philippines, Japan and beyond.”

Garcia acknowledged that the so-called “Big Four” accounting firms in the country—SGV & Co., and the local partners of PriceWaterhouseCoopers, KPMG and Deloitte—are also aggressively courting Japanese corporations, but explained that they mainly go for the large multinational firms.

In contrast, RFG will focus on the “underserved” Japanese SMEs like intermediate suppliers to large multinationals, which also need audit services for their local operations.

“We will fill this gap,” he said.