BDO appoints new member firm in Samoa

BDO is pleased to announce that Betham & Co has joined the BDO network as BDO Samoa, effective 1 January 2017.

BDO Samoa was established in 1981 and is now the largest public accounting, tax and advisory firm in the Pacific Island nation of Samoa. The firm’s 3 partners, Terrence and Ernest Betham, and Hanalei Leung Wai-Betham, have over 30 years’ experience and, together with some 20 professional staff, enjoy an expanding client portfolio and a large share of the local market. With strong leadership and a focus on delivering exceptional client service, BDO Samoa is committed to invest in the new infrastructure that will facilitate the firm’s future development. The Pacific region is an area of increasing interest to overseas investment, particularly from countries such as China, Australia and New Zealand. The region is also a large beneficiary from a number of foreign aid agencies.

For BDO, the appointment of a firm in Samoa is an opportunity to further implement its strategy for growth in the Pacific region and to complement the leading BDO member firms in Fiji, French Polynesia and New Zealand.

Terrence Betham, Senior Partner, is confident that joining the BDO network will accelerate future success for the firm. Mr Betham began his working career with the Government Tax Office, later moving into what was then Polynesian Airlines, where he became the airline’s first local general manager and directed the acquisition and operation of the airline’s first Boeing 737 jet. Expressing his excitement about joining the BDO network, Terrence comments: “The BDO name and brand will enable us to develop a formidable audit practice in the Samoan market and compete at the highest levels. We are particularly attracted to the development and growth strategy that BDO is implementing across the Pacific region. We have already begun a beneficial business relationship with BDO in New Zealand and in Fiji and are looking forward to a successful collaboration throughout the region and across the whole BDO network.”

Stephen Darley, CEO of BDO Asia Pacific, adds: “BDO Samoa shares our global ambition to be the leader for exceptional client service and will, alongside other BDO member firms in the Pacific lead the way in developing BDO’s global footprint in the Pacific region.”