A webinar presented by the IBA Taxes Committee
| 16 May 2023 1600 – 1730 SGT As the OECD’s two pillars that address tax challenges arising from the digitalization of the economy, continue to drive tax changes on a global scale, in tandem with that, local tax laws and the economic environment are also rapidly evolving in many Asian jurisdictions. These are critical considerations for businesses and investments into Asia. This webinar will discuss and provide tax law updates on these salient topics not only from the taxpayer’s perspective, but also from the tax authorities’ position. Session one on “Navigating global developments: perspectives on the pillars and more,” will address various major developments around the globe and explore their impact, issues and complexities. During this session, the OECD’s two pillars initiatives (often referred to as BEPS 2.0), United States tax legislation and the Asian response will be discussed. Session two, on “Regional tax developments,” will focus on recent tax law changes and updates in China, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines, and also discuss landmark tax cases and tax audit trends in some of these jurisdictions. Moderators: Soo-Jeong Ahn Yulchon, Seoul; Diversity and Inclusion Officer, IBA Taxes CommitteeIrene Yoke Ngor Yong Shearn Delamore & Co, Kuala Lumpur; Membership Officer – Asia, Australia, New Zealand, IBA Taxes Committee Speakers: Wai Yee Chow Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore, SingaporeMary Elizabeth Martinez Vergara & Gonzalez Sociedad, ManilaRahayu Hoed Makarim & Taira S, JakartaLi Na East China University of Political Science and Law, ShanghaiMichael Orchowski Sullian & Cromwell, LondonAmit Singhania Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co, Gurugram, Haryana Soo-Jeong Ahn Partner, Yulchon LLC Soo-Jeong is a member of Yulchon’s tax practice group and comes with extensive experience advising and defending multinationals corporations and private clients in tax audits and disputes. Her practices focuses on cross-border M&A, investment structuring and estate planning. She is known for her well-rounded sense of the client’s needs based on her experience as practitioner and also as inhouse counsel. Yulchon LLC is one of the full-fledged law firms in Korea, with more than 600 professionals, out of which 150 are dedicated solely to tax practice. She currently serves as Diversity & Inclusion Officer of the IBA Taxes Committee and is a member of the Practice Council to the International Tax Program at NYU Law School. She is a frequent speaker in and contributor to tax conferences and journals. Irene Yong Partner, Shearn Delamore & Co. Irene practises in all aspects of tax law advisory, structuring, planning, audits, investigations, dispute resolution and litigation (including tax appeals, declaratory proceedings, judicial review applications, civil suits, windings up), sales tax, service tax, goods and services tax (GST), transfer pricing, income tax, real property gains tax, indirect taxes, stamp duty, taxation of oil and gas companies, tax incentives, trusts, and asset protection and planning. Irene has appeared as counsel for taxpayers before the GST Appeal Tribunal, the Special Commissioners of Income Tax and the Superior Courts of Malaysia. She currently serves as Membership Officer – Asia, Australia & New Zealand of the IBA Taxes Committee. Amit Singhania Partner, Tax Practice Group, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co, Gurugram, Haryana and Mumbai Amit has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions and other transaction advisory, where he provides holistic solutions to clients. He also advises clients on transfer pricing issues, strategizing tax litigation matters, representation before courts and tax authorities, and policy advocacy. Amit has recently represented Walmart in its acquisition of Flipkart. He also works very closely on matters pertaining to cross border investments and financial services sector. He has recently finalized the structures for inbound investments for Walmart, Tiger Media Holdings, Rabo Bank, Mayfield, Canaan Advisors, BMO Nesbitt Burns, etc. Amit is a member of the tax committee of CII, FICCI and ASSOCHAM. WWL has recognised him as “Global Leader” in the ‘WWL Corporate Tax Global Guides 2022’, Forbes has recognised him as Top 100 lawyers in Forbes India Legal Power List 2022, RSG Consulting has also recognised him as a prominent tax practitioner. He is ranked consistently by Chambers and Partners and recently in their 2022 edition for Taxation. He is a regular speaker at the Regional Council of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and has contributed numerous articles on direct taxes in leading journals and newspapers. He is also a member of the Study Circle of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal Bar Association, New Delhi. Michael Orchowski European Counsel, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP Michael is European Counsel in Sullivan & Cromwell’s London office, where his practice focuses on US international taxation. Michael has represented US and non-US banks, insurance companies, private equity firms and corporations, on cross-border mergers and acquisitions, financings and restructurings. He also advises on US federal income tax treatment of securities and complex financial products. Michael has written, co-authored and contributed to numerous articles, bar reports and comment letters on a variety of tax topics, ranging from FATCA, securities reopenings to real estate mortgage investment conduits. Before qualifying as a lawyer, Michael spent four years as a scientist at Unilever. Chow Wai Yee Assistant Commissioner, Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) Wai Yee is the Assistant Commissioner, Corporate Tax Division of IRAS. She has over 25 years of experience in the area of taxation. In her current role, she leads the division in the formulation of domestic income tax policies and implementation of compliance programmes for large and medium companies. Prior to this, she was Assistant Commissioner of the Tax Policy & International Tax Division of IRAS and responsible for the negotiations of tax treaties & transfer pricing matters. Mary Elizabeth M. Belmonte Head, Tax Practice Group, Martinez Vergara & Gonzalez Sociedad (MVGS) Marybee heads the Tax Practice Group of Martinez Vergara & Gonzalez Sociedad (MVGS), Philippines, and has been recognised as a Recommended Lawyer for Taxation by the Asia Pacific Legal 500. She specializes in tax and corporate law matters, including tax advisory and consultation work, tax advocacy and litigation, tax planning and compliance, estate planning, estate settlement, corporate services work, contract review, due diligence, and special project transactions. She has assisted and represented multinational and high-profile companies across various industries in their tax assessment cases and tax refund claims before the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Court of Tax Appeals. Prior to joining MVGS, she was a Senior Associate of Salvador Llanillo & Bernardo, law firm specializing in tax. Marybee is a certified Chartered Trust and Estate Planner and assists in various estate and tax planning of high net-worth individuals and families as clients of MVGS. She is also a Certified Public Accountant and has previously worked with SyCip Gorres Velayo & Co., an affiliate of Ernst & Young Global. Rahayu Ningsih Hoed Partner, Makarim & Taira S Rahayu Ningsih Hoed has been with Makarim & Taira S for more than 30 years rendering her the most senior partner at the firm. She has extensive experience in almost every aspect of legal practice due to her background as journalist and paralegal and is a widely recognized authority on corporate and M&A transactions, arbitration, employment, and project financing. Rahayu has represented many major multinationals companies such as, Sumitomo Corporation, Halliburton, Marubeni Corporation, Shell, GAP Inc, Kellog Brown & Root and more. Her achievements include project financing for the 1,320MW large capacity Tanjung Jati B power plant and its expansions, major land acquisitions for infrastructure and mining projects, and highly sensitive mass terminations of employees. Her expertise is recognized in several legal directories such as Chambers and Partners as a Key Individual for Dispute Resolutions and Real Estate and Legal500 as a Leading Individual for Corporate and M&A, Employment, Projects and Energy and Real Estate. Asialaw Profiles has also selected her as Elite Practioner and IFLR1000 has also ranked her Highly Regarded lawyer. Dr. Na Li Associate Professor, East China University of Political Science and Law Dr Na Li was admitted to the China Bar in 2005, and to the New York State Bar in 2009. She has been Associate Professor at the East China University of Political Science and Law since 2018, conducting postgraduate and undergraduate courses on international law and Chinese tax law. She is also a Member of the Editorial Board of the IBFD’s (International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation) Online Collection Global Treaties Commentaries, and has written articles and papers for the IBFD and other publications. Presently, she is also an external consultant to Medtronic in respect of its legal matters in China. Dr. Na Li has lectured Chinese tax law courses at universities in Australia, Austria, Spain, Russia, India and Singapore, and she was a Visiting Researcher at the Ministry of Finance, People’s Republic of China in 2021. She holds a Ph.D. in Law from the Vienna University of Economics and Business, LL.M from the Boston University School of Law and LL.B of Law from Fudan University. |
