The Hong Kong office will be used to serve clients in the jurisdiction and other Asian countries.

Australian family office and tax advisory firm Chapman Eastway is expanding into the Hong Kong market, it announced yesterday. 

The firm has appointed Jean-Frederic Gagne to lead the Hong Kong operations, who has 15 years in experience in corporate finance, banking, law, business advisory and family office services. Prior to this, Gagne was executive vice president for a single European family office based in Hong Kong; he has been the trusted advisor to another “prominent European family” for more than seven years. Before that, he was an investment banker for BMO Capital Markets in Canada, and a tax attorney with the law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell in New York. Before practising law, he was a manager of the financial advisory services of Deloitte in Montréal.

The Hong Kong operation will serve clients in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and “selected countries throughout Asia”, Chapman Eastway said.

“Increased regulatory and tax compliance, together with sustained geopolitical uncertainty, are making it increasingly difficult to manage significant wealth,” Sean Cortis, chief executive of Chapman Eastway, said. 

“The appointment of Jean-Frederic Gagne further strengthens our capabilities in Hong Kong and helps our team develop the strategies to navigate a growing number of wealth management and tax issues,” he continued. 

The firm noted that its move comes amid Australia’s execution of a raft of “significant” free trade deals with Asian partners such as China.

“The task of managing family wealth in the Asia-Pacific region has never been greater. For more than 100 years, Chapman Eastway has served individuals, families and businesses by providing strategic advice and counsel,” Gagne said.