Wendy Walton is in celebratory mood following the success of BDO’s merger with Moore Stephens, which sets it on a path to deliver £590 million more in revenue. ‘It’s been fantastic for our business,’ she exclaims, describing it as her proudest moment of the past year. This is good news for the wider network of businesses Walton oversees too, in her position as the head of global private client services. This arm of the company looks after the needs of some of its wealthiest and most ambitious and entrepreneurial clients. It also means HNWs are able to access senior strategists such as Walton ‘without layers of bureaucracy’. ‘Our purpose is to help HNWs succeed,’ she says. ‘We do this by building long-term relationships and bring new ideas to the table.’ Recent conversations have revealed increasing interest and concern around areas involving capital preservation and succession matters. Walton is one of BDO’s key figures, having climbed the ranks since starting as a trainee. ‘I decided I wanted to be a partner almost immediately,’ she says. At first her role was focused on UK individuals and families; today, international HNWs with complex tax affairs make up most of her client base. Her tried and tested strategy is ‘to consider what the client wants to achieve and then work through a plan of how to get there, considering the tax implications along the way’.
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