WTP Advisors Opens Global Business Incentives Group

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Jan. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- WTP Advisors, an award-winning tax and business advisory services firm, has opened a new division called Global Business Incentives, to be led by industry expert Paul Lo. WTP Advisors' Global Business Incentives will help companies identify and negotiate the most lucrative incentive packages offered by  government entities who want to either attract new business to their area, or retain and encourage expansion of existing businesses.

"Many companies often overlook or are even unaware of the numerous financial and non-financial programs available to them, which are designed to attract private investment in property and human capital development. Such programs include low-interest financing options, tax credits and abatements, financial grants, and even free or low-cost real property.  These programs, which vary from state-to-state and country-to-country, are regularly adjusted to keep up with competition from neighboring jurisdictions for new jobs and investment," says Lo.

Lo's specialty is knowing what specific incentives are available, negotiating the best possible package for them, and then seeing that the incentive package is fully administered.

"Paul has worked in virtually every state, negotiating millions of dollars of savings, and we are confident he'll negotiate millions more for WTP clients," says Ian Boccaccio, partner and co-founder of WTP Advisors.

WTP Global Business Incentives will assist both U.S. companies seeking options for operations abroad, and foreign companies looking to expand into the United States.

"Roughly fifty percent of the incentives available are overlooked or unclaimed. This indicates that there is a potentially large economic gain to be realized from being proactive in your human development and capital investment endeavors. You will be rewarded financially for adopting such a proactive stance in your company's growth and investment," says Lo.

This gross underuse of benefits may be due to the fact that most incentives are in the form of tax breaks. Typically, by the time a company's tax department finds out about any expansion – usually at the time a capital investment is about to be made - it's too late to negotiate any package.

"We need to be in front of CEOs as soon as they are contemplating development or investments of any sort," says Lo.  "We know what to look for, what to negotiate, and who to tap in the organization to ensure the best possible outcome.  Negotiable incentives are designed to encourage and facilitate investment and are not a reward for an investment that is imminent or which has already taken place."

Incentive packages may also be available for upgrades to machinery and equipment or the expansion of an existing footprint.  Many localities even offer incentives for employee training.

"Even in today's economy, the government focus is on maintaining its employment base and keeping existing industry happy," says Lo.

Texas, for example, has nearly doubled its workforce development funds for training, offering $90.0M or up to $500,000 per business,  per biennium for training that will increase the productivity and skill sets of its  workforce, in areas such as Lean and Six Sigma training, computer-based skills, and many vocational subjects as well. The state's goal is to improve its attractiveness as a destination state by supplying a highly-developed workforce.  

As for emerging industry trends, Lo believes that many of the new program's energies will be working with companies to identify incentives for environmentally sound technology, or so-called Green Incentives.

About Paul Lo

Paul Lo has over twenty years of consulting experience specializing in business incentives negotiations and real estate advisory services.  He has successfully negotiated multi-million dollar economic development packages for multi-national corporations across numerous market segments including manufacturing, aerospace, pharmaceuticals, media & entertainment, telecommunications, professional services, and retail.  Paul has designed and conducted work plans to complement his clients' national and global strategies incorporating services such as business incentives analyses and negotiations, strategic tax planning, restructuring analyses, bond financing, transactional reviews, audit resolution, and fair market valuation analyses.  His client list includes many of the world's largest companies, as well as significant governmental bodies, including the Government of Japan.

Lo received his BA from the University of Southern California and continued his studies at the Said Business School, University of Oxford, UK and Columbia University.  Prior to joining WTP Advisors Paul served as the Vice President of International accounts for a business incentives consulting firm, as the Assistant Vice President of a national real estate consulting firm, and as a Manager at a Big Four accounting firm where his specialty was in business incentive package negotiations and tax and real estate advisory services.  

WTP Advisors is a leader in tax and business advisory services for a global marketplace. Our highly skilled professionals equipped with years of industry experience, coupled with our cutting-edge technologies, make substantive and long-term differences to an organization's profitability. WTP Advisors is headquartered in White Plains, New York, with offices across North America, Asia and Europe.

SOURCE WTP Advisors