WHK acquires NZ accounting firm

WHK has further strengthened its presence in the New Zealand market by acquiring Sherwin Chan & Walshe, an accounting firm based in Wellington.

“The acquisition of Sherwin Chan & Walshe allows us to build a presence in a major capital city, as well as consolidate our existing presence in New Zealand, in what we consider to be a growth market,” Graeme Fowler, chief executive officer, WHK Group, said.

This recent acquisition brings the number of New Zealand member firms to four and provides WHK with a strong presence in the country’s capital city.

Sherwin Chan & Walshe joins WHK Cook Adam, WHK Gosling Chapman and Coffey Davidson as the latest New Zealand firm to come under the WHK umbrella.

The acquisition is part of a continued strategy by WHK to ‘dot the map’ in New Zealand in the same way as it has in Australia.

Sherwin Chan & Walshe was established in 1998 and has grown into a leading mid-tier accounting firm in Wellington with a broad client base that includes government, retail, manufacturing and property customers.

It currently has four partners, three associates and approximately 50 staff with an annual revenue of around NZ$6.5million.

Business advisory services represent the largest area of activity for Sherwin Chan & Walshe with over 70 per cent of income derived from traditional mid-tier accounting and tax services.

WHK has committed to supporting further growth and development of Sherwin Chan & Walshe’s local market, both organically and by acquisition.

Although WHK was reluctant to disclose exactly what it paid for Sherwin Chan & Walshe, the transaction did involve the issue of 160,000 WHK Group shares at a cost of $5.50 each.

For now, Sherwin Chan & Walshe will continue to trade under its existing name in New Zealand.

“There will be no immediate change, but like most of our previous acquisitions they will eventually fall under the WHK banner,” Fowler said.