AI Magazine Issue 1 2017

36 Acquisition International - January 2017 Lugna is a transaction-focused boutique firm with an international presence delivering a premium value-added service at a reasonable cost. As part of the AI Tax Awards 2017, João Gil Figueira received the Most Outstanding Multinational Corporate Tax Adviser award. In this interview, João Gil Figueira from the firm’s tax department discusses how it aims to offer the very highest standard of service to every client it supports. ugna is a boutique firm specialized in tax, corporate restructuring, business model optimization, private client advisory and immigration. Owing to its international footprint, it handles cross-border and jurisdiction-specific issues and has a deep understanding of the cultural and practical aspects of investing and doing business in Portugal, Brazil, Angola, Timor-Leste (East-Timor) and Macao. The firm also provides international business leverage to national corporations and entrepreneurs, with its tax department focusing on advisory services and structuring for family businesses, SMEs and private clients. João outlines the firm’s service offering in more detail and explains how it aims to ensure that it meets the needs of its vast range of clients. “Using knowledge that comes from experience, we develop individualized structures for private and corporate (including non-profit organizations) clients with complex needs, attractive projects and challenging requirements”. Offering a tax team that comprises of highly skilled and known advisors, lawyers and members of the Academia, João is confident that his team can provide the services its clients need. “In today’s market, proper tax advisory services require coordination between several aspects of doing business or managing wealth. As such our staff members hold degrees in both Law and Management and are experts in the fine points of law, finance, accounting and management with extensive knowledge of cross border operations. This enables the department to offer a vast portfolio of tax services which is fine-tuned according to the target jurisdiction or a target industry because doing business in some jurisdictions require more Talent in Taxation L tax compliance while others need more structuring and planning. “Overall, we have decades of cumulative experience in the legal and tax industry and rely on a fresh multidisciplinary and bespoke approach to each project. Diversity is part of the firm’s culture in selecting staff and designing workflow processes. It is a business oriented team that is fluent in a wide variety of languages, and this ensures that we meet the exact needs of our diverse client base.” Operating in such a competitive market, João is keen to emphasise the techniques that his department employs in order to differentiate itself. “With the tax industry being such an incredibly diverse and fast-paced environment, our focus on international taxation and structuring requires staff to adopt a continuous improvement philosophy in seeking new technical information as well as practical knowledge of the sector the client is in. This requires extensive travelling and an on-site approach to doing business, allowing us to see and evaluate how solutions designed back at the office are implemented in real life. “When separating ourselves from our competitors, we differentiate by looking into niche practice areas and gaining expertise where most tax practitioners are not comfortable in. This includes cross border M&A or recapitalisation related issues or comprehensive tax advisory for internationally mobile families with complex affairs and investment structures in both common and civil law jurisdictions. In terms of workflow process, we stand apart by distancing ourselves from a traditional insular approach to projects where information is partitioned. Any topic is up for internal discussion, allowing us to leverage on our multidisciplinary and diverse team.” In 2016, the number of Lugna’s clients that are start- ups or in fintech increased, a tendency expected to continue in 2017. Overall, this team is central to the firm’s success, and moving forward the firm will be looking to build upon this by maintaining a great team and working to ensure that it remains at the forefront of the latest industry developments. The team believes that preventing problem through regular interaction and open communication positions its clients for growth. Company: Lugna Name: João Gil Figueira Email: [email protected] Web: www.lugna.pt Address: Rua Rodrigo da Fonseca 9 – 3º B, 1250-189 Lisbon, Portugal Phone: +351 21 131 04 08 “Using knowledge that comes from experience , we develop individualized structures for private and corporate (including non-profit organizations) clients with complex needs, attractive projects and challenging requirements ”. 1701AI75