Latest news with #advisory
Bloomberg
5 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Barclays Hires Former Numis Chief Alex Ham for Dealmaking Push
Barclays Plc hired Alex Ham, the former co-chief executive officer at Deutsche Numis, to help the bank with its efforts to grow market share in both advisory and equity capital markets. Ham will join in early 2026 as global chairman of investment banking, according to a memo to staff seen by Bloomberg. After previously advising upstarts like Klarna Group Plc and Nu Holdings Ltd. as well as working with venture capital firms like Sequoia Capital and Tiger Global, Ham will be expected to deepen Barclays' ties with technology firms and entrepreneurs.
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
Dhruva expands operations in UAE to support SME's with robust tax framework
Dubai, UAE: Dhruva Advisors, the leading tax consultancy firm in the GCC, has expanded its footprint in the United Arab Emirates with the opening of its third office in the region and second in Dubai at Emaar Square, Downtown Dubai. Strategically located in the heart of the Emirate's commercial hub, the new office underscores Dhruva's ongoing commitment to delivering partner-led, specialised tax advisory services across the region. CEO Dinesh Kanabar led the inauguration alongside his leadership team. The firm continues to maintain a strong presence in Abu Dhabi's Reem Island, reflecting its robust client base and growing operations throughout the UAE. Since its entry into the UAE in 2017, Dhruva's Middle East practice helmed by Partner and Head of GCC, Nimish Goel has grown from a 15-member team to over 130 professionals today. The firm has played a vital role in steering organisations through major regulatory changes such as the rollout of VAT, the implementation of Corporate Tax, and the introduction of Transfer Pricing regulations, becoming a trusted partner for both local businesses and global enterprises. This expansion is closely aligned with the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, a strategic roadmap aiming to double the size of Dubai's economy and position it among the world's top three global cities. 'We are honoured to contribute to Dubai's ambitious growth story,' said Nimish Goel. 'Our new Emaar Square office positions us at the centre of economic activity and deepens our commitment to support D33's transformative vision.' A homegrown brand with a global outlook, Dhruva serves clients across diverse sectors, including oil & gas, healthcare, retail, construction, technology, artificial intelligence, and crypto. The firm is known for offering tailored tax strategies that address industry-specific challenges while identifying new opportunities for sustainable growth. In response to the UAE's evolving tax ecosystem, Dhruva has also launched an AI-powered platform that transforms tax management by making it intuitive, real-time, and predictive. The solution leverages advanced machine learning, large language models, and natural language processing to interpret complex regulations, analyse financial data, and generate actionable insights instantly. Fully integrated with major ERP systems, ensures continuous compliance through API-driven updates and built-in audit features. 'Our vision from day one has been to simplify taxation and empower businesses with clarity, control, and confidence,' added Nimish Goel.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
KPMG's Atif Zaim on taking his biggest role yet
This story was originally published on To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily newsletter. Atif Zaim, KPMG's newly appointed U.S. managing principal and deputy chair, is preparing to take on one of the firm's most visible leadership roles. Zaim, who has been with the company for over 30 years, sat down with shortly after the start of his five-year term to share how the advisory business has evolved, what clients expect from firm leaders today and how his career shaped his approach to leading in the rapidly changing marketplace of public accounting. As he steps into this new role, he is still laser-focused on helping partners and clients while now tasked with leading KPMG's operations. In the first of a two-part series, Zaim explains how professional services firms are balancing growth ambitions with talent pressures, private equity's growing impact on services at the firm and KPMG's approach to technology implementation. Atif Zaim Deputy chair and U.S. managing principal, KPMG Notable previous positions: U.S. consulting leader, KPMG National managing principal, advisory, KPMG Principal, management consulting, customer and operations service line leader, KPMG This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. ATIF ZAIM: The day-to-day is going to change in a very significant way. The scope of responsibilities shifts quite a bit. At the highest level, the role requires being in front of clients, managing internal stakeholders, setting priorities and strategy and motivating the team — so those things I have done and will continue to do. At that level, it stays the same. But when considering my scope — from the consulting business to the entirety of the firm — it's a very different picture. Moving from one revenue-producing division in advisory to building relationships across the full firm, including audit and tax. Many of those partners I already know and have worked with for decades, but the nature of those relationships will change. There are also the operations of the firm, which weren't previously part of the scope. Then, setting strategy at a business unit level versus setting it at the firm level, that's a different goal and new for me. The audience is much larger, and the way to reach that audience must evolve. Each step I've taken over my career was part of a natural progression — expanding the audience and evolving how to engage them. Yes, we have a lot of in-house development we do on our platforms. And yes, we partner with technology providers significantly. It's a mix, and it'll stay that way. There's no reason to swing to one side. There are certain things where I don't know if you really gain a competitive advantage by building something someone else already created. There are lots of credible solutions on the market that are made by companies that specialize in that product or service. This is one of those things where we have the same conversation internally as we do with our clients. There wasn't always a credible alternative. In some cases, based on your industry or your unique situation, you need to build it yourself. But in others, like a video conferencing platform, for example, why would you build it? That's not your core. You can license it at a reasonable cost and focus your effort on what matters. It's the same for us. There are areas where there isn't a platform on the market that functions the way we want, so we're going to build that internally. But for the core technologies that feed into that platform, we'll use what's available and partner with tech firms. We've never felt we must invent everything to feel like we're innovating. If we must, we will. But it's about being intentional, not reinventing the wheel just because we can. The biggest and most obvious priority is selecting the right team. Alongside [CEO Tim Walsh], we've focused on cementing our leadership group. We're very excited. The core management committee — a group of 10 — has already been announced. That's one of the major shifts we're making. As part of that, we've reorganized certain areas to help us execute more effectively. One of the early but important changes is moving toward a more industry-focused structure. The goal is to ensure clients experience audit, tax and advisory as an integrated offering tailored to their industry. We've also made organizational adjustments to improve agility and responsiveness. That includes efforts to streamline processes and remove friction that slows down execution. Engaging with partners remains essential. Tim and I have traveled across the country and met with roughly half of our partners in person so far. We're also building on that with a new internal social platform where both of us are active, alongside many partners, to keep the dialogue going. Unlike many companies, our shareholders are also our partners — we work with them every day. That makes continuous engagement even more important. Not necessarily in our offerings or services to clients, but I think it's certainly influencing our mindset, the way we operate, and the manner in which we serve our PE clients. When you look at the economy overall, the shift is clear. The number of publicly listed companies is declining. Meanwhile, the number of privately owned firms, including those backed by private equity, is growing significantly. It doesn't necessarily change the types of services we provide. You're still going to have due diligence, finance transformation, audit, tax, technology, customer — all of it. However, PE's growing influence is fundamentally reshaping the market, and we've been evolving our service model in response. Historically, firms like ours were organized around functional services — audit, tax, advisory — but PE clients need something different: integrated, industry-focused, lifecycle-driven solutions that support value creation from due diligence through exit. Often, you're not just dealing with the portfolio company, you're also working with the fund or the private equity firm that owns it. That's a different dynamic. You've got to think about their hold period, what they care about during that window and what their exit strategy is. In response, we're shifting to a more connected service model, focused less on traditional lines and more on solving for outcomes across the investment lifecycle. We're embedding sector specialists, leveraging data and AI more aggressively and training our teams to think like investors, not just advisers. One of our biggest areas of focus right now is improving operational performance between entry and exit for these types of companies; helping clients manage cash better, drive growth, improve efficiency, optimize pricing and take out costs. Those are the things private equity sponsors care about, and it's where we can bring value. We are also enhancing our relationship approach, moving from transactional engagement to becoming strategic partners who anticipate needs, not just respond to them. Ultimately, our goal is to help PE firms move faster, de-risk decisions and unlock value across their portfolios, and that requires a very different way of showing up. Three things come to mind. One of them is people and the relationships you make. We're all together on our professional journeys. We're developing together, learning together and serving clients together. The people I've worked with, that I've been in the trenches with, we've forged ties and friendships that are meaningful, powerful and long-lasting. The other is that with this skill set, there are only a few places where you could have this impact with clients. And this excites me — being in the front of it, being in front of clients and delivering for our clients. The third thing is that the work is still interesting because it keeps evolving. After governance, risk and compliance, I started getting into business performance improvement work, helping clients run their businesses better. Then, business transformation became my focus. A few years later, we started the consulting business again. More recently, we've been leaning into technology and generative AI. So every few years, the work looks different. The problems have changed, the clients have changed and the tools have changed. This is what has kept me engaged. I never felt like I was doing the same thing over and over. That's probably why I've stayed as long as I have; I've never been bored. This is part one of two-part series. Read part two here. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CTV News
16-07-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Smoke could move into Calgary on Wednesday
As of 6 p.m. Tuesday, no air quality advisories were in effect for Calgary and the surrounding areas, but that could change on Wednesday.
National Post
16-07-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Despite calls for change, Poilievre's campaign manager keeps an advisory role, firm on party payroll
Article content Byrne did not respond to a request for comment on why the contract she has with the party is with her firm and not directly with her. Article content Two sources close to Byrne's thinking said she is still working in an advisory capacity with the party and with Poilievre but has been spending more time in Toronto and dedicating more hours to her lobbying firm ever since the Conservatives lost the election. Article content 'There's nothing to announce because nothing's really changed,' said one of them, who added there is currently 'no bad blood' with either Poilievre or his wife Anaida, who campaigned with her husband daily and has taken an active role within the party. Article content Sources told National Post that Byrne is spending time on more focused issues, such as Poilievre's upcoming byelection in the rural Alberta riding of Battle River-Crowfoot, set for Aug.18, as well as his upcoming leadership review. Article content That review will be a crucial test for Poilievre, who will be the first Conservative leader to undergo such a review, given that his two predecessors either stepped down or were ousted by caucus before having the opportunity to do so. Article content Article content One Conservative MP, who spoke on condition of anonymity, called for Byrne to be removed, pointing to widespread dissatisfaction over how the party handled the nomination of its candidates, with dozens disqualified from running and others appointed last-minute in ridings across Ontario. Article content The MP said there is an expectation that Poilievre demonstrates that he has changed, particularly when it comes to his tone and approach. Article content While no formal election review has been triggered, Poilievre has been making calls, including to conservative and right-wing influencers, and speaking with candidates and MPs about what they want done, according to sources. Article content Among the concerns expressed about the campaign have been the lack of visibility of candidates who ran for the party. Article content Some Conservative insiders have noted that since the race, efforts have not gone unnoticed to give some of the newest Conservative MPs speaking time in the House of Commons. Poilievre himself also recently gave his first English interview to CBC, the public broadcaster he has vowed to cut public funding. Article content At least two sources also expressed caution about parting ways with Byrne, given her skills as an organizer and the larger issue that Poilievre has, which is to demonstrate change and present himself as an alternative to Carney. Public opinion polls suggest Carney is enjoying a high level of support among Canadians and advancing Conservative-friendly ideas, such as getting major infrastructure projects built, such as pipelines. Article content On Monday, National Post asked Poilievre if he was considering any changes to his team or his approach since the election. He said 'every election comes with lessons' and proceeded to explain how he needs to reach even more Canadians with his message. Article content 'Our mission is to give people back control of their lives, to make this a country where anyone who works hard gets a good life and that homes are affordable, streets are safe, immigration works for Canada first. Those are going to be the things we focus on,' he said. Article content 'At the same time, we have to ask how we can reach more people with that message. We ended up getting a tremendous result… but 41 per cent might not be enough in the future. So, we have to ask how we can expand even beyond that number,' he said.
