KPMG China and Chongchuan district representatives show off a business license, enabling the firm to set up a Nantong branch office. [Photo/WeChat account: wxntfb]

Financial advisory and services giant KPMG Limited – one of the big four accounting companies in the world – has signed up to open a branch office in the Chongchuan district of Nantong city in East China's Jiangsu province.

The group's China arm, KPMG Advisory (China) Limited, inked the agreement on June 8, making Nantong the second prefecture-level city in East and West China that KPMG has set up a branch,  after the office in Suzhou.

KPMG offers audits, risk assessments, tax management, valuations and management advisory services, among other things.

The group serves customers globally, with more than 236,000 partners and employees working in member firms established in 145 countries and regions.

Currently, KPMG China has 32 offices across China's 29 cities, with over 14,000 partners and employees.

Wu Xinming, mayor of Nantong, welcomed KPMG through a video link. He stated that with the implementation of multiple national development strategies such as Yangtze River Delta integration, Nantong has driven into the fast lane of development.

At the start of the year, the city rolled out a three-year plan on boosting the development of its modern services industry, to transform itself into a highland in the sector in the YRD region with global competitiveness.

Wu urged KPMG to give full play to its advantages in terms of global resources – as well as its focus on auditing, taxation and financial advice – to help more Nantong businesses become integrated into international markets and to encourage more multinationals to invest in the city.

Honson To, chairman of KPMG China, thanked the city for its support and said the new branch in Nantong signaled the group's confidence in the economic recovery of the YRD region.

Moving forward, plans are for KPMG to continue to give full play to its strength in industrial development planning, digital technology, infrastructure and other sectors, to contribute to the high-quality development of Nantong and the entire YRD region, To added.