In only about four years since its founding, RHTLaw Taylor Wessing has shown itself to be one of the more progressive-minded law firms in the region. The affiliation with Taylor Wessing came fairly early on, but more recently the firm has launched its ASEAN+ network, ventured beyond traditional legal services and is planning to list a holding company early next year. Tan Chong Huat, the firm’s managing partner describes the firm’s evolution to Ranajit Dam
ALB: In late February, the RHT Group of Companies announced plans to list its holding company, RHT Holdings Limited, on the SGX Catalist Board. What was the motivation behind the fundraising plan?
Tan: RHTLaw Taylor Wessing and RHT Holdings are both home-grown Singaporean companies, which have quickly risen to become the eighth-largest law firm in the country and the leading professional services group in Asia respectively. As Singapore is our home base, we strongly believe in the country’s future as an economic hub, as well as the Singapore capital markets as the best way to unlock market value in our rapidly-growing professional services business.
The proceeds will help the RHT Group of Companies in our regional endeavors, growth and acquisition plans.
ALB: Late last year, a holding company connected with ZICOLaw also listed on SGX. In what ways will RHT’s approach to that listing differ?
Tan: RHT Holdings is the holding company for four leading professional services companies: RHT Capital, RHT Corporate Advisory, RHT Compliance Solutions and RHT Business Management Services.
ZICO Holdings is similar to RHT Holdings in the sense that it is a holding company offering integrated professional services; however, we believe that there are significant differences between the two companies.
The aforesaid companies within RHT Holdings are top-tier, market leaders in their respective industries in Singapore. Additionally, there are nine more group companies within the RHT Group of Companies, which further expand our service offerings to clients. We expect these professional services companies to further contribute to RHT Holdings in the future.
ALB: Starting with the Taylor Wessing affiliation, to the creation of the ASEAN+ network, and now the IPO plan, RHT has tended to think a lot more laterally than the average law firm. What would you say drives this kind of thinking?
Tan: Now is the time for legal and professional services firms to think globally.
We foresee greater integration of legal services and professional services throughout the ASEAN region and beyond, as clients now expect more streamlined and efficient solutions for their legal and business needs.
Clients are now looking outside Singapore for future business opportunities, and it is the obligation of their legal and professional advisors to support them in their international endeavours. For this reason, we have established the ASEAN+ Group, a network of leading law firms in eight jurisdictions across the region.
Additionally, we have been a member of the Taylor Wessing network since 2012, which offers clients access to Europe, the Middle East and North America.
We now offer clients access to 1,800 professionals around the world as a result of our strategic initiative to look beyond Singapore’s borders.
Looking ahead, we see many additional legal services and professional firms embracing this strategy.
ALB: RHT is no longer just a law firm, offering services ranging from regulatory and compliance solutions to training and development. What is your growth strategy so far in this regard?
Tan: In order for law firms to truly remain competitive and to add value to their clients, they must look in areas outside of traditional legal services. For this reason, our group has invested strategically throughout the spectrum of professional services for the benefit of our clients.
We foresee greater integration of legal services and professional services throughout the ASEAN region and beyond, as clients now expect more streamlined and efficient solutions for their business needs.
We are now working to further strengthen our regional capacities not only in law, but also in growth sectors such as Islamic finance, compliance and governance, data risk management, technology and intellectual property, as well as cross-border finance.
Additionally, we have invested in many services that clients may not associate with traditional law, but in which we see many synergies, such as media and communications, executive search, fiduciary services, and other professional services.
At present, there are 13 group companies in the RHT group of companies, which offer clients a suite of professional services under one roof, something that has not yet been seen in Singapore. Each of the 13 total group companies are managed and run by professionals, and is independent of RHTLaw Taylor Wessing.
We strongly believe that this is the way forward for our industry.
ALB: How do you perceive Singapore’s legal services market at this juncture, particularly with the advent of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC)?
Tan: The provision of legal services is an increasingly international offering, as clients expect one-stop business and legal solutions in Singapore and beyond. With increased integration throughout ASEAN, most notably with the advent of the AEC, we foresee this trend only growing stronger, as commerce will only increase throughout the region.
With our ASEAN+ Group and our membership with the Taylor Wessing network, we already have a strong integrated presence, which is beneficial for our clients.
We see ourselves offering clients solutions on a regional and global basis.
ALB: During your time at the helm of RHT Law Taylor Wessing, what would you say has been your greatest achievement?
Tan: The greatest achievement for RHTLaw Taylor Wessing has been the rapid pace of internationalisation and the establishment of leadership across various practice areas, led and undertaken by the core team over the last four years.
When the founding partners of the firm decided to embark on this journey in May 2011, our goal was to establish a law firm that looked beyond Singapore’s borders for opportunities. We feel that this is imperative to remaining ahead of the curve in an increasingly connected ASEAN community, and an increasingly globalised world.
This initial decision came with many risks and there were no guarantees that we would succeed in making this vision into a reality.
Since our inception, we have worked tirelessly to build our firm into a leading practice with regional and global capabilities, and have achieved remarkable successes.
In four short years we have grown to become a full service law firm with about 100 fee earners, a feat which usually take local law firms in Singapore three or more decades to achieve. In addition, we have established 13 non-law professional outfits where six or seven of these are probably the top of their classes in Asia.
In Asia, we have successfully established our ASEAN+ Group comprising the leading law firms in ASEAN, Korea and Taiwan. Moving ahead, we will pursue further mergers and joint venture opportunities within our ASEAN+ Group and will work to strengthen our presence in ASEAN and other parts of Asia.
Globally, we will continue to provide our clients with greater access, skills and services in Europe, the Middle East and North America. As Taylor Wessing opened two offices in the United States last year, we are now a part of a truly global network, which we expect to only grow stronger in the future.
ALB: What do the next year or two hold for RHT, both in terms of regional growth, as well as breadth of services offered?
Tan: RHT Holdings will continue to establish itself as the leading professional services firm in Asia, with experience and expertise across areas of law and professional services. We will continue to establish a leadership position in the areas of law and professional services including, compliance, corporate advisory, continuing sponsorship and additional services.
The group will also continue to incubate its other professional services companies with the goal of offering clients a holistic approach to legal and professional services.
RHTLaw Taylor Wessing will continue to establish itself as one of the leading law firms in Asia.
We will continue to prioritise regional growth in neighboring ASEAN economies to accommodate clients’ growing needs for streamlined legal and professional services. As we already have affiliations and partnerships with eight leading regional law firms, we now offer clients access to 750 professionals throughout the region. We expect several JV and M&A opportunities following the IPO of RHT Holdings.
