Things have changed on mainland, says Grant Thornton boss

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With the mainland's accounting standards fast catching up, Daniel Lin says the rebirth enables the firm to tap opportunities across the border

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Daniel Lin says one challenge is to persuade the market that his firm meets the highest international standards. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Jasper Moiseiwitsch

Published: 9:19am, 22 Aug 2014Updated: 1:40am, 23 Aug 2014

Accounting firm Grant Thornton has a problematic history in Hong Kong.

The global parent "expelled" Grant Thornton from Hong Kong in 2010. About 400 people - out of a Hong Kong staff of 450, including three-quarters of the partners - went to rival BDO, jumping just before the expulsion took effect. Grant Thornton then immediately relaunched in Hong Kong under the umbrella of the mainland firm, with Daniel Lin Ching-yee as its managing partner.

The exiting partners protested against what they believed would be diminished standards at the firm once it was subsumed into the mainland operations.

Staff were forced to choose sides. Either stay with Grant Thornton, integrated with the mainland and with the mainland as the dominant partner, or leave. Lin, who grew up in Hong Kong and was trained in Britain, chose the former.

Hong Kong is only a city and an international accounting firm cannot survive in just a city

"A lot of our clients have operations in China. Hong Kong is only a city and an international accounting firm cannot survive in just a city. So I think the strategy was correct to build a nationwide firm that includes Hong Kong," Lin said.