In between lockdowns, thewealthworks’ Director Offshore Operations, Duncan Alexander, set off to Mauritius for a 6-month secondment to establish an official company presence on the island.
thewealthworks already have a client-base in Mauritius, but as the global reach of our entity management software increases, we wanted to ensure that we can continue to provide our exceptional level of support to clients located outside of the UK.
The search begins
Duncan was tasked with growing our client-base on the island as well as working with local consultants to form a permanent base via a partnership with a local firm who would be licenced to sell and support our products in the region. We have recently authorised Octad Solutions as a licenced partner in Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, so finding a partner in Mauritius was a logical steppingstone. Having a partner in Mauritius will help support the local users and be able to provide a bridge between the UK and Singapore, to assist with supporting our growing user-base in Southeast Asia.
Mauritius is a well-known offshore jurisdiction for wealth management and many global fiduciary and corporate service providers have an office there.
“I already have a close relationship with our clients on the island and they have welcomed the opportunity to have some consultancy time with me.” Duncan explains. “They are also keen to work with thewealthworks in helping us set up a base here. We have a growing global community of users. So, engaging with local clients and consultancy firms to create a network of partners who can help provide local support is essential. Not only to meet our business goals but also to continue to provide the exceptional level of client care to all our users no matter where in the world they are.”
Not all sunshine
One of the biggest challenges Duncan faced was the changing restrictions in response to the current risk of COVID-19. When Duncan arrived on the island, there were no cases, so after spending the required time in quarantine, he was then able to start work as normal. However, on 10 March the island went into lockdown and life went on hold.
“Some people think I must be mad for starting a secondment abroad in the middle of a pandemic, but wealth management work didn’t stop and neither did the development of our software. Mauritius is a beautiful island which definitely makes a Monday morning in lockdown a lot less objectionable.” Duncan states “But, after signing a partnership with Octad Solutions in Singapore, it felt like the right time to expand our network of partners. This is a really exciting time for us; our flagship platform, WealthWorks+, has seen a rapid period of development to make it the most advanced entity management software solution on the market. We know the advantages and time efficiencies our product offers wealth managers, and we can’t wait to establish it as one of the entity management software solutions of choice, in Mauritius and across the globe.”
If you would like find out more about WealthWorks+ or how to become a licenced partner get in touch with us today!
