Gordon S. Blair is almost an institution in Monaco. Chaired by Xavier de Sarrau, this firm specialising in legal and tax consultancy has a very international clientele. It is also present in Geneva. Meet its CEO, Gilbert Delacour.
Since when has Gordon S. Blair been based in Monaco?
Since 1920, so for 95 years. That gives us an almost institutional character! We provide legal and tax consulting for private individuals (“Private customers”) and businesses (“Corporate Services”) and implement bespoke solutions to render our customers’ business or assets secure.
For what type of clientele?
When Gordon S. Blair set up in Monaco, its clientele was mainly British. Then the founder retired and sold his firm to Ernst&Young, which in ten years broadened the firm’s practices and customer spectrum. Now we are a fully independent firm and our customers come from all over Europe, still with a high proportion of British but also Swiss and Scandinavians, Asians and North Americans. We work on French tax issues and particularly on the ISF wealth tax, but mainly for non-residents who have simply invested in the country.
And naturally many private individual customers living in Monaco, whom we support in all aspects connected with their wealth, be it structuring, property transactions or estate management. These residents increasingly continue to invest and manage their business from Monaco and we help them get organised from the legal and regulatory points of view.
A high proportion of private customers, then?
Private customers are in our genes. The personal relationships we build with private customers are highly rewarding and there are great family histories which we need to learn about. Then we move from the empathetic to the operational stage – implementing solutions which meet their personal and financial needs.
We are also opportunely deployed in the corporate market.
In that area we can make mention of the Swiss bank UBP which we supported for its setting up in Monaco, and the resumption of Lloyds Bank activities in 2014 and Coutts now. Or our participation in the restructuring of Borgwarner.
We are also the favoured correspondent of leading international law and consulting firms, for the Monegasque part of a number of operations.
Our private clientele and business clientele are well-balanced now.
Are you seeking customers abroad?
We are pleased to represent Monaco abroad and have undertaken many initiatives in this direction, always in conjunction with the authorities. Thus, over the past two years, we have organised breakfasts in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Luxemburg with firms, banks and institutions, to make Monaco better known. Monaco has established a real virtuous ecosystem, with top-level banks, management companies, audit and quality consulting firms – in short a financial and professional services offering in line with sophisticated international customers’ expectations. With the benefit of uniquely local services and great availability of the authorities.
The creation of the “Gordon S. Blair Rendez-Vous” is also part of our promotional activities in Monaco. We wanted to be more present with our customers, our purchasing advisors and the institutions. These are periodic meetings aimed at sharing thoughts on practical cases rather than theory. Starting from an experience or a particular aspect of a regulation, we start an operational debate. It is an initiative with an ideal fit with what a firm like ours can offer, simply and with the right investment for our means.
So does your employees’ profile need to be adapted to these two types of market?
Our team has 25 people and covers different areas of expertise: business law, private law, banking regulation, employment law, taxation, property law etc. All our employees have an international profile and have worked in other jurisdictions. I like to say that we are practitioners drawing on one or even two areas of expertise. Apart from our own services we have a wide network which we call upon: lawyers, tax experts, wealth managers, and administrative or trust service providers, particularly in jurisdictions with a strong tradition in private wealth management, such as Switzerland, Luxemburg, the Channel Isles etc.
How do you see the future of Gordon S. Blair?
We want to be a leading law and taxation player in Monaco, and to make the most of its dynamic attractiveness. We are confident about the future of our market, while being aware of the need to adapt optimally by having the right resources at the right time. We need to pre-empt as regards recruitment and training, so as to seize the opportunities which arise. Our ambition is to become a point of reference firm for family and asset issues, while retaining a modest size.
What do you think of the direction Monaco has taken in transparency?
We have no problem with the direction the Monegasque authorities have taken. The fact that Monaco is on the white list of countries conducting a fiscal policy compliant with the OECD criteria is a good thing. It generates new constraints of course, especially in terms of compliance. But it is also an opportunity to take a new look at asset activities and define new management criteria. These new constraints and new criteria force us to implement more sophisticated solutions. Aren’t imagination and security what customers expect from their legal and tax consultant?
