AASC hosts conference to promote global cooperation

Last week, 60 representatives from companies based in more than 18 countries gathered at the three-day HLB International Asia Pacific Regional Conference to share experiences and knowledge. HLB International is a global network of independent professional accounting firms and business advisers present in 130 countries worldwide. The conference, titled “Cross-border Investment – Challenges and Prospects”, is hosted by auditing firm AASC, a member of HLB International.

According to Do Manh Cuong, deputy general director of AASC, cross-border investment is booming and legally facilitated by a number of common economic zones, free trade areas and bilateral or multilateral agreements.

“Particularly, within our Asia Pacific region, since 1989, we had the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation comprised of 21 economies with the objective of ‘creating and advancing free trade for Asian-Pacific prosperity’, by ‘promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative, and secure growth by accelerating regional economic integration’. Most recently, in 2015, the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is also regarded as another ‘milestone in regional economic integration’,” Cuong said in his opening speech.

The lower tariffs in the free trade agreements (FTAs) that Vietnam has been joining will spur foreign trade and direct investment in the country, and more Vietnamese firms will expand to regional markets, creating tremendous growth potential for auditing firms.

It also means international accounting, auditing, and consulting firms should be working closely in order to provide no-border service for clients.

The conference, Cuong said, was a special occasion for members of HLB International to “engage in an open and constructive discussion, as well as create more effective and tighter connections”.

Robert Gerard Tautges, chief executive officer of HLB International, said that the prospects of international investment into Vietnam were endless. “Vietnam is a very important country. It has an educated workforce and natural resources and many countries are looking to invest into Vietnam,” he said, adding that the conference aimed to bring member companies together so that they could take advantage of cross-border investment.

Tautges stressed the importance of having AASC in HLB International’s network. “AASC will help others that want to invest into Vietnam or their clients who look to invest outside of Vietnam,” he said.

Recently, Vietnam has seen a surge in foreign direct investment (FDI). According to the Foreign Investment Agency, in the first seven months Vietnam attracted $12.94 billion in FDI, up 46.9 per cent year-on-year. The disbursed capital reached $8.55 billion, up 15.5 per cent year-on-year. The AEC, as well as the FTAs that Vietnam signed, have been a strong motivation for capital flows into the country.

Established in Vietnam by the Ministry of Finance in 1991, AASC is widely regarded as one of the first two auditing companies to lay the foundation for the development of Vietnam’s Law on Independent Audit.

As of now the company has ventured outside of Vietnam to provide auditing and consulting services to clients in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Indonesia, and has been involved in multiple projects of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.