Yet again, Singapore features in the Legal Press as yet more firms declare their hand to launch offices and/or strong relationships in what is now seen as the new playground for the high net worth individual/family on an international basis. With the latest news that banks in Switzerland forced account holders to declare income and so pay tax, so the Singaporean option looks far more entertaining.
See: Taylor Wessing eyes HK, Singapore tie-up prospects
The Singaporean Government has been making strong overtures to attract the wealthy with regulatory changes to make investments tax efficient, with the highest rate of personal tax at 20%, corporate tax at a flat 17% it may be a very compelling place to be. Whilst it may be easy enough to send out 'Partners to set up offices', the question is how many of them are truly prepared and able to actually tackle what would be an increasingly competitive marketplace. Some commentators feel that maybe there are already enough private client firms in Singapore, yet Withers, Speechlys, Farrers etc. are all developing offices out there. How will firms maintain their competitive edge?
See: Up-market struggle