TFS Gulf 
- Hi, I am CA Dinesh Singh. I was one of the many who lost my job during the 2008 financial crisis in Dubai.
- I turned that adversity into opportunity by establishing an Audit, Finance, and Tax Consulting firm.
- With the UAE’s focus on compliance and the growth of SMEs, demand for our services is rising.
- Here is how you can expand into Dubai & GCC.
Backstory
I began my professional journey in the mid-90s with an MNC bank in India, while simultaneously pursuing Chartered Accountancy.
Upon qualifying as a CA, I continued my banking career. However, in the late 90s and early 2000s, the bank I worked for saw a rapid decline in market share.
Around the same time, a former colleague who was leading wealth management at a UAE Nationalized Bank reached out to me. He offered me a position on his team, promising international exposure, which I eagerly accepted.
My exceptional performance caught the attention of another multinational private bank in the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC). They offered me a higher salary, prompting me to make the move.
Unfortunately, in late 2008, the notorious global market crash left me jobless.
I had the option to seek out another job, but I decided to leverage my competencies, particularly in chartered accountancy and accounting practices. Opting for the latter, in 2009, I founded Quantum Consulting.
Timeline of my journey
Similar to most businesses, I encountered hiccups in the early years. It was surely not an easy journey but one of my best decisions.
Consulting (2009)
Initially, I planned to offer accounting and wealth management advisory services, exclusively. However, the majority of my clients sought assistance with their accounting systems, internal control management, and reporting.
This turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as it brought me back to my roots and the core of my chartered accountancy training.
Getting the auditor’s license (2011)
I also saw an opportunity to practice as an Auditor.
Quantum Consulting was not approved as an auditing firm by the Ministry of Economy UAE. To secure the necessary credentials I began preparing at the end of 2009 and throughout early 2010.
It took me approximately 11 months to compile and fulfil all the required paperwork and qualifications for the auditor’s license.
I was fortunate to receive the license. In 2011, we set up our auditing arm, Quantum Auditing.
We have listed auditors or approved auditors with every free zone across the UAE. So we have clients where we do the annual, audit and assurance, compliances every year.
Capitalizing on compliance opportunities
The introduction of the Value Added Tax (VAT) in 2017 in the UAE presented a new opportunity for us.
We began providing annual audit and assurance services to our clients, ensuring compliance with regulations.
VAT rates in the UAE, Bahrain, and KSA are 5%, 10%, and 15% respectively. So you can see that all these GCC countries prioritize compliance requirements.
Additionally, the introduction of Corporate Tax presents a lot of opportunities.
If you are an auditor or a tax-focused financial consultant the opportunities are huge in this segment.
We didn’t have this opportunity way back in 2011-2012.
Expansion to Bahrain (2019)
In 2019, Bahrain introduced VAT which gave us a great opportunity. We established a branch of our Dubai-based firm in Bahrain.
In just two years, our operations in Bahrain have matched the revenues achieved by Quantum Auditing over 6-8 years!
In the future, we may consider expanding to other countries like Oman or KSA.
Partnership with an Indian firm (2022)
We have formed a partnership with an Indian CA Firm, Komandoor & Co. They will assist Quantum Auditing in carrying out outsourced tasks, such as accounting services, project financing, or anything under the umbrella of financial services, keeping aside auditing.
Furthermore, we are interested in exploring opportunities in the areas of acquisitions, business valuations, deals, and structuring.
If you ask me about my revenue split here it is:
- Auditing brings in around 40-45% of our revenues (Now with the introduction of Corporate Tax, opportunities for Auditors may rise)
- Consulting contributes 60-65%
Setting up a finance, tax, and audit services firm in the GCC?
Would I encourage someone to set up their offices in Dubai or GCC? 100 % Yes. Opportunities are huge.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) economy is poised to grow at a staggering rate, that is for sure.
I would say mainly UAE, Bahrain, Oman, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). These are the GCC countries, one should look at if you have the bandwidth.
UAE
Compliance and Regulations
- The UAE has been working hard to be compliance-friendly similar to other developed economies.
- Processes have changed and compliance requirements have become stricter in recent years.
- Financial Consultants are required to assist businesses in complying with Economic Substance (ESR), and Anti-Money Laundering regulations in the UAE.
SMEs
- It is worth noting that over 90% of companies in the UAE are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
- These SMEs contribute more than 60% to the country’s GDP, which is quite substantial. And they need the help of finance and tax consulting and auditing professionals.
- This includes services such as business valuation exercises and Corporate Tax support.
Corporate Tax
- Despite the introduction of a 9% Corporate Tax, having a presence in the UAE still makes sense for a business, when compared to other jurisdictions.
- Registrations for Corporate Tax services began on 1st March this year, indicating an upcoming growing demand in the market.
Bahrain
Bahrain is next in line in terms of opportunities for Finance, Tax, and Auditing services.
The country is preparing to implement a Corporate Tax, similar to the UAE. The exact rates are still unknown, but if we look at the VAT rates, Bahrain is at 10% while KSA is at 15%.
To ensure compliance, businesses may need to seek the assistance of a financial consultant or auditor specializing in taxes.
Oman
There are strict laws regarding annual audit reports and the implementation of VAT which presents a requirement for consulting and audit professionals.
KSA
If you would ask me why am I not in KSA? Yeah. Honestly, I don’t I don’t have that kind of bandwidth to have to manage multiple locations.
Maybe next year!
Questions you must ask yourself?
How do you want to position yourself in the market? That, again, depends on your business strategy or marketing strategy as such.
Why should one come to a new entrant in the market? This profession runs purely on faith and trust. If the client has faith and trust in you, he will work with you, and he will appoint you as a product of a financial consultant.
If you are looking at giving a one-time advice to someone, then that’ll never work. You have to think in terms of the long term.
Do you have it in you to survive? The environment here would not allow you to succeed at the rate at which you may want to be successful.
The reason also for that is particularly in professional services companies like ours, most new businesses happen, let’s say, references only.
It will take time for a new consulting firm to establish itself as a successful operation in this part of the world.
The opportunities are you huge but there are a lot of players already operating in this market. The market is very competitive with many undercharging!
Do you have the working capital? Have a minimum of 6 months to 1 year worth of working capital, assuming that you may not strike big clients immediately.
Can you hire talent locally? You need people who have the competence. Have a team of 1 or 2 initially. Get your first client and then focus on growing your team.
Wrapping up…
Currently, it is extremely challenging to acquire an auditing license in the UAE. This trend is expected to continue in the coming months due to the increased authority of the auditing and accounting governing body in the UAE.
If you are a fellow member of the ICAI or any other global accounting Institute and have at least 5 years of experience as a practising accountant, you may be eligible for the license.
Good news… There is a lot of work in the consulting space compared to the practice space.
Consider obtaining a license for management consulting, which will include tax preparation, tax planning, etcetera. There’s a defined activity for that as well.
Moreover, another activity involves bookkeeping accounting, etc. Incorporating these three activities into your license will provide you with more opportunities to succeed in the consulting space.
Getting from 0 to 1 is the most difficult proposition in terms of my own experience. Once you are there, going from 1 to 10 is not a very big very big deal.
Be ethical and diligent; you will surely succeed here.
