September 5, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ryan & Company and Robert Brakel & Associates Ltd. Combine to Create North American Market Share Leader.
Dallas, Texas -- Ryan & Company, America’s largest independent state &
local tax consulting firm, today announced that it has combined with Robert
Brakel & Associates Ltd. (RBA®), the leading
Canadian sales tax recovery firm. Under the amalgamation agreement, unanimously approved by
the Boards of Directors of both companies on Friday, RBA becomes an operating subsidiary of Ryan &
Company.
RBA headquarters, based in Brampton, Ontario, will remain headquarters for Canadian operations.
G. Brint Ryan, Managing Principal of Ryan & Company, will serve as Chief Executive Officer of
both companies. The combined company is the North American market leader in sales tax
consulting and recovery with more than $150 million in annual revenue from the sales and use
tax service line. Ryan & Company, with total annual revenue of more than $200 million, now has more than
600 professionals and associates in 26 North American locations, serving clients in the United States and
Canada.
Making it Easy
“Prior to today, there was no true single source for U.S. and Canadian sales tax solutions,” said
G. Brint Ryan, Managing Principal of Ryan & Company. “The reality, however, is that, for many
organizations, these issues are interconnected.”
The combination of the two leading firms within Canada and the U.S. makes sense.
“It’s a given today that if you are in Canada, you’re in the U.S., and you need access to
expertise on sales taxes across both borders,” said Bob Brakel, Chief Executive Officer of Robert Brakel &
Associates.
The alliance between these two firms over the past two years has proven that organizations
value the opportunity to get answers to their sales and related tax issues from a source that
understands both the Canadian and U.S. regimes better that anyone else. This is the natural next
step in ensuring that organizations in need of this depth of service get it.
Getting the Best
“This is more than just access to specialized tax expertise,” said Brakel. “First and foremost, both
RBA and Ryan & Company agree that client service is what sets us apart from other ‘practitioners’.”
This is evident in the program crafted by RBA to help clients manage Canadian sales taxes on an
ongoing basis, including the acclaimed, no voicemail RBA TaxDirect® hotline; the array of course
options, including web-based training, available through the innovative RBA Training Program™;
access to RBA publications through the RBA Tax Library CD; and the significant advances most
recently introduced by RBA in its client reporting package.
“When you provide clients with access to the best people in the field and combine it with the most
client-focused service offering available, the client wins. That’s the bottom line
and what we've achieved here, in the context of two very unique markets,” said
Ryan.
What to Expect
The main benefit to RBA and Ryan & Company clients is combined access to the highest level
Canadian and U.S. sales tax and related expertise available anywhere. This will continue
to be delivered in Canada through the RBA organization located in Brampton, Ontario. The
Canadian management team, and consulting and client support staff remain in place and continue
to deliver Canada’s Complete Sales Tax Solution™.
They will bring to the Canadian market deeper access to U.S. state & local
tax resources, as well as related practice areas that include fuel and excise taxes, property
taxes, telecommunications taxes, franchise taxes, credits and incentives, and tax technology
solutions. Clients can even expect to obtain access to Ryan & Company's expanding practice in
multistate income taxes, as it affects their business in the U.S.
RBA clients can also expect to see new innovations in review processes and service delivery, as
the firms integrate best practices in audit methodologies, software and data analysis, and client
reporting needs and requirements.
“All in all, this is the most exciting and innovative development to date in the North American
state & local tax market,” said Ryan. “It meets the need of detailed local knowledge
in the context of multinational requirements. That’s unique.”
About Robert Brakel & Associates
Robert Brakel & Associates is Canada’s largest and most respected consulting firm that
specializes solely in assisting clients recover overpaid sales taxes and cope with ongoing sales
tax compliance and administration. Since 1974, the Firm has performed work for more than 5,000
organizations on a variety of tax matters provincially, nationally, and internationally. More
information can be found at www.robertbrakel.com.
About Ryan & Company
Ryan & Company is America's largest independent state & local tax consulting firm. Headquartered in
Dallas, Texas, the Firm provides a comprehensive range of state & local tax services on a multistate
basis, including audit defense, tax recovery, tax decision automation, dispute resolution, and
strategic planning. With more than 525 professionals and associates in 25 locations throughout the
United States, Ryan & Company serves many of the world's most prominent Fortune 1000 companies.
PRESS INFORMATION CONTACT:
G. Brint Ryan
Managing Principal
Ryan & Company
972.934.0022
brint.ryan@ryanco.com
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