‘International Perception of Asia as a Low-Cost Financial Centre Inaccurate’ – STEP Report

The findings of a report released today by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) contradict the perception that East Asia is the low cost centre that many in Europe believe it to be.

The findings that emerge from the report, published during this week’s STEP Asia Conference in Singapore, both confirm and contradict several widely held external perceptions about trust and estate practice in East Asia. As the newest and fastest growing region in the world for wealth planning, the report provides useful insight into differences with more established International Financial Centres as well as fresh input into the long running debate on Hong Kong vs Singapore as rival centres of private client wealth management.

The impact of China as a force for change remains hotly debated as does the assertion that increasing regulatory initiatives – especially tax compliance – will make practitioners’ lives more difficult.

STEP Chief Executive David Harvey said: “The picture that emerges from this research is of an industry confidently taking its own path of development into a future that is both similar to, and quite different from, the route followed by more established International Financial Centres.”

The report can be viewed online here