A&M sets up shop in Saudi Arabia, and it’s hiring fast
The international tax talent war just added a new battleground: Riyadh. Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) Tax has opened a full-service practice in Saudi Arabia, a move Managing Director Marvin Rust calls “a pivotal milestone” for clients navigating the kingdom’s rapidly evolving tax space, Consultancy-me.com reports. This move aligns with a broader global trend towards enhanced tax transparency and reform, reminiscent of shifts seen in many jurisdictions, as evidenced by developments in the Nigerian Tax Laws 2025.
The new office already boasts 20-plus team members led by former Public Investment Fund tax chief Craig McAree. The group will advise on everything from zakat and VAT to cross-border structuring and transfer-pricing tech, areas where modernized practices, such as those set out in the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, are becoming increasingly critical. A&M’s regional sprint follows last year’s UAE launch and mirrors the firm’s wider Asia push, noted earlier by International Tax Review.
Why now? Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 program is redrawing the fiscal rulebook and luring multinationals to set up regional hubs. “Clients need boots-on-the-ground insight, yesterday,” Rust said. With local authorities tightening enforcement and eyeing new revenue streams, having ex-Big Four and ex-government firepower in one room could be the difference between smooth sailing and surprise assessments.
The reaction was swift: regional tax directors cheered the extra bench strength, while rivals privately fretted over brain-drain. One Gulf-based CFO quipped that A&M’s arrival “turns up the competitive heat just as compliance deadlines shorten.”
Around the Tax World
• Africa won’t wait for Washington. After a high-profile U.S. walkout, African officials are pressing ahead with a legally binding UN tax convention, according to Africa Confidential. Talks resume in Nairobi this November.
• Crypto clarity, South-African style. Pretoria has released draft rules to embed the OECD’s Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) into domestic law, a step hailed as “crucial for transparency,” TechAfrica News notes.
• Tariff turbulence redux. Former President Trump’s revived tariff agenda faces a Supreme Court showdown in November, after an appeals court deemed most of his levies illegal, per the BBC.
• Tech to the rescue in transfer pricing. Multinationals are leaning on AI-driven platforms to tame mounting documentation demands, Bloomberg Law reports.
Tax Stat of the Day
20+, The number of professionals already on A&M’s new Saudi tax roster, giving the practice instant scale.
Looking Ahead
All eyes turn to Nairobi this November, where African negotiators aim to lock in draft text for the UN tax convention, momentum that could reshape global rule-making in 2026.