UHY's new member firm in China, Shanghai ZhongHua Certified Public Accountants, has more than 350 professionals, including 21 partners and 130 certified public accountants, at its offices in Shanghai.
Pictured, from left, are: Shen Rong, partner; Zhong Heng, master of Shanghai Finance Bureau; Sun Yong, managing partner; Chen YuGui, general secretary of the Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants; Yuan BaiWei, deputy director of Shanghai Finance Bureau; Ren FangFang, general secretary of Shanghai Certified Public Accountant Association; Lin DongMo and Lu ShiMin, partners.
Both Chinese and English are spoken within the firm.
Founded in 1985, Shanghai ZhongHua is today one of the largest accounting firms in Shanghai and China. It was previously a member of another accountancy network.
Shanghai ZhongHua provides services to more than 1,000 clients, including banks, other financial institutions, real estate developers, shipping developers, hotels, software developers, automotive suppliers, and companies in the science and technology industry.
The full-service firm, registered with the Public Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), has extensive experience in Initial Public Offering (IPO) services: it has acted as reporting accountants to more than 60 companies undertaking IPO – involving companies in textiles, software, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, real estate, design, chemicals, media and manufacturing.
In addition to audit and tax, Shanghai ZhongHua services also include expert witness and forensic accounting and IT. Its advisory services include management consultancy, valuations and financial accounting systems. Its corporate finance services include joint ventures, mergers & acquisitions, privatisations, identifying sources of new capital, and corporate recovery and insolvency.
Of the firm's USD 20 million revenue (2009 figure), 70 per cent is from audit; 10 per cent from tax; 5 per cent from each of corporate finance, bookkeeping services and valuation sectors; and the remainder from assurance engagement and insolvency/corporate recovery.
The firm's website address is here:
Shanghai ZhongHua plans to expand beyond Shanghai into China's other major economic centres.
Managing partner, Sun Yong, says: "Training plays an important role in the continuous professional development of our partners and staff, but technical excellence is not enough today. The quality of our services depends on the calibre of the partner and team assigned to each of our clients, so we select people who are not only professionally knowledgeable but also committed, with proven business abilities, who can analyse, interpret and advise on international concerns."
The firm and its clients already do business internationally: in Europe, the US and Singapore.
UHY director Ladislav Hornan, who carried out the due diligence on Shanghai ZhongHua, told delegates at the Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) region meeting that Shanghai ZhongHua had previously been members of BDO and Grant Thornton. The firm left Grant Thornton after only a few months.
UHY chairman John Wolfgang talks about the 'learning curve' of previous endeavours to secure a member firm in China and how the new firm will open channels to more international business opportunities. See the vodcast here: Interview on the admission of the new China firm