KPMG China announced the opening of its Tianjin office on October 9, the company's 15th office in the country. KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing audit, tax and advisory services.

Stephen Yiu, Chairman of KPMG China, speaking about the significance of this milestone, said that "KPMG highly values the China market, and we have and will continue to invest significant resources to develop our service network. Tianjin, also known as the ‘Pearl of the Bohai Sea', is one of China's key economic hubs, and the third pillar of China's economic growth.

"Naturally, it is very important to KPMG's China strategy. We have seen a clear acceleration of economic growth in Tianjin in recent years, and a rapid expansion of its economy. Tianjin is now an important base of many large companies, comprising multinationals, private and State-owned enterprises. The opening of the Tianjin office will enable us to better serve our clients and continue to contribute to the rapid economic development of Tianjin."

Situated at the heart of the Bohai Economic Rim, Tianjin is one of the most developed cities of China. In 2006, the State Council envisioned the city as an economic center of the Bohai Economic Rim, an international port, northern China's economic hub, and an ecological city. The State Council set a goal to "push forward the development and opening up of the Binhai New Area" – a state-level new area within the jurisdiction of Tianjin - as part of the national strategies, and detailed its ambitions relating to this goal in the 11th Five-Year Plan, thus turning the area into a national pilot zone for the nation's overall reform.

Edwin Fung, Senior Partner of KPMG Northern China, discussed the economic development of the city: "Tianjin experienced a sustained and rapid economic growth during the 11th Five-Year Plan period. It took great steps forward in the structural adjustment of industries, further enhancement in the city planning and construction, and increased social and economic activities. Tianjin has entered a boom period with a leading role in the regional economy."

"In addition to attracting investment from renowned domestic and foreign companies and influential private enterprises, Tianjin's strong development momentum has propelled it to become the preferred location for national projects," Fung also said.

"We are therefore delighted to open this new office. We will offer consistently high-quality services to domestic and foreign enterprises investing in Tianjin by leveraging on our deep industry knowledge and extensive experience of serving the business community in the region."

Philip Ng, Senior Partner at the new KPMG Tianjin office, said that he expects the office to be a premium professional services platform with KPMG's cutting-edge delivery standards. He also said that it will focus on providing clients with a full range of investment and advisory services, including IPO related services, merger and acquisition and management consulting.

"At the same time, we have noticed a rising trend for Tianjin-based enterprises to expand their business overseas with more than 30 percentage of them now having investment overseas," said Ng. "Establishing an office in Tianjin can help us better understand their investment needs, respond more quickly, and mobilise KPMG professionals across China as well as over 150 countries worldwide to provide prompt professional advice for their overseas investments."

Stephen Yiu added that the "Chinese government aims to develop Tianjin into an international port, northern China's economic hub, and an ecological city by 2020," and that KPMG shares the same vision for the city's future. "Tianjin is a metropolitan city full of business opportunities, and we will continue to expand our service team to support its development. We believe that Tianjin and KPMG will grow together in our quest for a better future."