As the US FATCA Act continues to send shockwaves through financial services, international law firm Withers has opened a Singapore office to meet "urgent demand" for information about the legislation.

Law firm Withers has opened an
office in Singapore, its second in Asia, to meet “urgent demand” from clients
seeking information on new US disclosure rules.

The new office will be located in
Raffles Place in Singapore’s financial district and is scheduled to open its
doors in May 2012, taking Withers’ international office network to ten.

The Singapore team will includeJay Krause, a US qualified partner specialising in servicing private
clients, trust companies and financial institutions. 

Krause will head Withers wealth
planning team in Asia. He is credited with being one of the leaders on the impact
of US IRS initiatives like the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and
voluntary disclosure. Krause will be joined by Philip Munro, a UK and
Hong Kong private client tax, trust and estates expert. Further
additions will be made in the coming months, said the firm in a statement.

“Recent
developments in international taxpayer information exchange have created
an overwhelming demand for our US and international tax expertise in Singapore,
as well as its South East Asian neighbours such
as Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand, as well as India
and Australia. This need is increasing daily as more and more Asian
institutions begin to come to grips with the far reaching effects of
the new US FATCA legislation, requiring financial institutions and trust
companies, among others, to identify their US clients and forward their
details to local or US tax authorities,” said Krause.

“The Singapore launch illustrates
a growing need for integrated legal advice on complex cross-border tax matters
amongst Withers’ global high net worth client-base, comprised of individuals
and families, their businesses, and the institutions that serve them,” said the
firm in a statement. Withers added that individuals or institutions seeking tax
and trust legal advice are currently under-served in South East Asia.

Withers opened its first Asia
office in Hong Kong in 2008. The Singapore office opening is subject to
regulatory approval.