Reanda Group eyes Chinese ‘Big 10’ strategy

Resource from:Accountancy Asia

A Chinese firm is seeking to expand through Asian mergers in order to cement its positionamong the nation’s largest domestic firms.

The Reanda Group plans to capitalise on a government policy to develop 5 to 10 ‘super big’ domestic accounting firms within the next decade. It is planned that these super firms will eventually challenge the Big Four for supremacy in China and grow their operations internationally.

Typically, global mid-tier networks have been partnering domestic Chinese firms in order to grow, but this is an example of a Chinesefirm branching out.

The Reanda Group’s founding member is Reanda Beijing, a firm with about 700 staff. Reanda Beijing was a BDO member firm in China until about three years ago. When the two organisations split, the Chinese firm decided to follow government encouragement to grow and become international.

The Reanda Group has been actively looking for new additions in recent years. The group has about 1,700 people in 16 branch offices, covering most of China’s major cities.

In 2008, the group’s combined fee income was about CNY310 million ($47.5 million); the Beijing firm contributed CNY140 million. The 2008 figures would have made the Reanda Group the ninth-largest mid-tier organisation in the International Accounting Bulletin’s China survey. The largest was RSM China with revenue of CNY601 million.

The Chinese government hopes each ‘super big’ firm will grow to annual fee income of CNY3 billion, which is about the average size of the Big Four in China at present.

One recent addition to the Reanda Group was a member firm in Hong Kong, which will help the group develop an international network.

The Hong Kong member is a joint venture between Reanda and local firm Lau &Au Yeung CPA. It is called Reanda Lau and Au Yeung CPA and operates from the same offices as Lau and Au Yeung CPA.

Lau & Au Yeung CPA has six partners and about 100 professionals. In 2008, the firm had turnover of HK$33 million ($4.26 million).

The firm is a founding member of the Elite Federation of Accountants (EFA) Network,which has been morphed out of loose affiliation between Lau & Au Yeung CPA and firms in Singapore and Macau, as well as one of Reanda’s branch offices, Reanda Zhuhai.The arrangement has caught the attention of Reanda Beijing but it is unclear whether this firm will join.

“Because we have the spirit to go overseas through this EFA concept, they thought we were the right partners to help them to develop the Reanda network overseas,” managing director Franklin Lau explained.

An international name for the new network has not been finalised, but it will most likely include the prefix Reanda.

Lau said the new organisation has been in contact with firms from countries including Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Thailand. The response has been positive.

“After we complete the Asian region’s affiliation, we will see whether we can go out and talk with firms in the Western countries,” Lau said.

附译文： 

利安达集团着眼“中国十大”的发展战略

来源：Accountancy Asia

为了巩固在国内大型会计师事务所中的地位，一家中国的会计师事务所正在通过在亚洲地区进行合并来扩大规模。

利安达集团计划抓紧政府在未来10年重点培育5-10家特大型会计师事务所的良机。这些特大型会计师事务所将最终挑战“四大”在我国注册会计师市场的霸主地位，并跨国发展他们的经营规模。

一般来说，全球中介机构网络为谋求发展，一直在与中国会计师事务所合作，但是这是一家中国会计师事务所扩大规模的典范。

利安达集团的创始成员是利安达北京，一个拥有约700名员工的事务所。直到约3年前，利安达北京是BOD在华的成员所。离开BDO后，利安达决定响应政府的鼓励和号召，发展并实现国际化。

近年来，利安达集团一直积极吸收新的成员，现有员工约1700人，分支机构16家，遍布国内各主要城市。

2008年，利安达集团的合并收入约3.1亿元人民币（4750万美元），其中北京所的收入1.4亿元人民币。利安达集团2008年的收入可以在国际会计简报-中国调查中，跻身于第九大中介组织。收入规模最大的是6.01亿元人民币的Rsm China。

中国政府希望特大型会计师事务所的收入达到30亿元人民币，大约与目前“四大”的平均收入水平持平。

利安达集团新的成员所设在香港，将协助利安达集团构建国际网络。这家香港成员所由利安达会计师事务所与香港本地的刘欧阳会计师事务所共同成立，公司名称是利安达刘欧阳（香港）会计师事务所，办公地点与刘欧阳会计师事务所相同。

刘欧阳会计师事务所有6个合伙人，员工约100人。2008年营业额3300万元港币（426万美元）。这个所是精英会计联盟（EFA）的创始所，与刘欧阳与新加坡和澳门的事务所，以及与利安达的一个分支机构-珠海分所的松散合作截然不同，这种合作方式已经引起了利安达北京的注意，但是这个事务所是否加入，还不明朗。

“基于我们通过EFA的经营理念走向海外的精神，他们认为我们是适合的合作伙伴，能够帮助他们发展利安达海外网络，”首席合伙人刘兆伟先生这样解释道。

新网络的国际名称还未最终确定，但是很有可能会在字首冠以利安达。

刘先生还说道，新公司已经与越南、马来西亚、文莱、印度尼西亚和泰国的事务所建立联系，反应比较积极。

“完成了在亚洲区域的联合之后，我们会考虑能否走出去，与西方国家的会计师事务所洽谈”，刘先生说。