Biography:

I trained in Private Client Services at Andersens and qualified as a CTA in 2000. In 2002 I joined BPP in Manchester as a CTA tutor before leaving in 2010 to set up iCount Training.

Biography:

Sten Günsel is a Partner at RSM Ebner Stolz with a core focus on international tax law and Global Employer Services for more than 20 years. As a qualified tax advisor and attorney-at-law, he provides strategic guidance to global corporations and expatriates on all questions relating to cross-border taxation, international assignment policies, and regulatory compliance. With a background in legal studies and certification as a specialist in international tax law, Sten combines legal proficiency with practical business insight to deliver holistic tax strategies for international clients.

Biography:

Elena is a Barrister with over 15 years’ experience in contentious financial regulation and corporate and white-collar crime. Elena is currently Senior Legal Counsel at Wells Fargo Bank in Financial Crime Legal. Elena previously worked at the Financial Conduct Authority in Enforcement Legal advising on regulatory/civil Enforcement cases against both firms and individuals and conducting litigation and advocacy before the Regulatory Decisions Committee, the Upper Tribunal and Courts. Elena also advised on contentious Authorization refusal cases and on Supervisory action. Elena started her career as a Criminal Barrister before holding positions in city law firms specializing in Financial Regulation, economic crime and internal investigations and has particular expertise in AML, Fraud, ABC and Sanctions.

Elena is a contributing author to Simon’s Taxes and Tolley’s Practice Management Tools.

Biography:

Barbara is Founder and Managing Partner of PKF Studio TCL - Tax Consulting Legal based in Italy, in Genoa Milan and Rome, www.studiotcl.com.

Barbara qualified as a Chartered Accountant, at Genoa’s Order of Chartered Accountants, in 2003. Since then, she has gained more than twenty years of professional experience in corporate tax and corporate consulting during the professional career as Director at Deloitte’s Corporate Tax Office; as partner in Primary Tax and Corporate Consultancy Firm in Genoa and Milan; registered for over 15 years in the Register of Auditors, now Statutory Auditors.

During her professional activity, she has gained experience in the field of tax and corporate accounting consulting, M&A, Due diligence, even in international environments, during the experience gained at Deloitte and within PKF international network, business evaluations, valuations, fairness opinion, pre-litigation and tax litigation management, insolvency proceedings, separate and consolidated financial statements, application of IAS-IFRS.

Barbara is also a member of Tax&Legal Commission in AIFI (Italian Private Equity, Venture Capital and Private Debt Association), which the PKF Studio TCL is associated with.

She has performed as speaker and publicist in topics of Permanent Establishment, Tax Inversion, Responsibility of the Statutory Auditor of the Portfolio Company (Private Debt Sector) and Family Office.

Biography:

Sophie is a very well known tax lecturer and writer and has been involved in ATT and CTA training for over 25 years with a reputation for giving clear, enthusiastic lectures.

Sophie is known for always having time to help students - whether in choosing which combination of CTA papers to sit and in which order or helping with technical queries.

Sophie started her career as a Chartered Accountant in the tax department of the London office of Andersen, qualifying in 1994 and winning prizes at every sitting of her ACA examinations.

She discovered her passion for lecturing through her involvement with internal tax training courses at Andersen and thereafter decided to pursue a full time training role, joining BPP Taxation Courses in 1996. Whilst at BPP Sophie passed her CTA examinations with distinction and was awarded the prize for the Personal Tax paper.

Sophie was CTA Course Director at BPP for some years before moving to Tolley in 2003. Sophie is one of the original members of the team who started the tax exam training business within Tolley. She is in charge of the updating of the material for both the distance learning and revision courses and the audio-visual lectures which Tolley provide to ATT and CTA students. Her knowledge of the way in which tax is examined across CTA is unrivalled.

Biography:

Malcolm Gunn is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation and has over 50 years of experience in advising on all aspects of UK tax, although he has a particular interest in capital taxes. For 16 years, he was an editor of the weekly magazine Taxation. In 2004, he left the magazine to concentrate on consultancy and advisory work.

Malcolm Gunn continues to contribute frequently to technical publications on UK tax, including a chapter each year in Tolley's Tax Planning on Relevant Property Trusts. He is the current author of Tolley's Inheritance Tax and joint author with Julie Butler of Stanley's UK Taxation of Farmers & Landowners. He is also general editor of Foster's Inheritance Tax, and a consultant with Butler and Co chartered accountants.

Malcolm Gunn was awarded the Lifetime Achievement award in the LexisNexis 2004 Tax Awards and is a member of the Worshipful Company of Tax Advisers.

Biography:

Catrin Harrison is a Partner in Charles Russell Speechlys LLP. She specialises in advice to internationally mobile individuals.

Biography:

Matt Parkes is a Director in Deloitte's indirect tax practice, specializing in environmental taxes and VAT. He has assisted a number of businesses with identifying potential environmental tax issues of infrastructure and similar projects, together with advising on and implementing solutions to mitigate environmental tax exposures.  Matt has worked closely with industry and authorities surrounding the introduction of significant changes to the Climate Change Levy.

Biography:

Ventsislav (Venzi) Vassilev is the Senior Strategist and founder of PKF Bulgaria and has a strong background and experience in the accountancy and tax consultancy sector. Mr Vassilev is a graduate of the University of Bristol in the UK in Economics and Accounting and started his career with Arthur Andersen & Co in the early 90s. Then in 1995 he founded Rex Consulting - a fast growing group of consultancy companies in Bulgaria which in 2014  joined the network of PKF International.

Venzi Vassilev has extensive experience in consulting and assisting foreign investors in Bulgaria. He leads a team of multilingual professional accountants, lawyers, financiers, business experts and administrative assistants. Under his leadership the team has created a company culture of a welcoming and informal atmosphere which is combined with a strong commitment to the client's business.

Currently PKF Bulgaria and the Rex Consulting group of companies have four offices in Bulgaria (Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Bansko); all of the offices are registered as separate entities. Rex Consulting Ltd also has a subsidiary in London  that specializes in asset management.

Mr Vassilev has been retired from his CEO position  since 2019 and remains the chairman of the supervisory board of the Rex Consulting Group. He continues to advise the firm's key clients on various strategic investment and financial issues.

Biography:

Andrew Rainford BA (Hons) CTA ATT is a Tax Advisor, author and editor living in North Wales, specialising in advising private clients and other advisers. He has a particular interest in advising Owner Managed Businesses, families and HNW individuals. Andrew trained and qualified with a boutique firm of accountants based in London, before taking over the operation of the tax department of a smaller firm in North Wales, whilst regularly contributing to various professional tax publications. Andrew also previously worked on EY's personal tax consultancy team. Andrew can be contacted at andrew@reddragontax.co.uk.

Biography:

Halil
Vice President of Tax | Tax Lawyer | Author | Lecturer

With over 13 years of extensive tax experience across Europe and the Middle East, Halil has guided international companies through complex tax landscapes in Europe and the MENAP region. His career blends advisory expertise with nearly 5 years as an in-house tax advisor, where he provided strategic guidance and successfully implemented effective tax solutions.

Halil also spent 8 years working at Big 4 firms, KPMG and PwC, where he gained invaluable experience advising clients on a wide range of tax matters. This foundation helped him build a strong technical background and the ability to address complex tax challenges with confidence.

In his most recent role, Halil established and developed a comprehensive tax function in response to the UAE’s introduction of Corporate Tax, Transfer Pricing, and Pillar 2 rules. His work included designing compliance frameworks, optimizing corporate structures, and embedding tax processes into business operations. This hands-on approach showcases his ability to translate complex regulations into practical, actionable solutions.

Halil holds a Bachelor’s in Dutch Law, a Master’s in International and European Taxation (Direct Taxes) from the University of Amsterdam, and a Post Master’s in Indirect Taxes from Maastricht University. He is the author of Fundamentals of GCC VAT, a reference for tax professionals in over 20 countries, and is currently working on a new book in the Direct Tax space. Additionally, he lectures at Middlesex University Dubai and the University of Amsterdam.

Known for his thoughtful and collaborative approach, as well as his ability to build meaningful relationships, Halil is valued by peers and professionals across the UAE, GCC, and Europe.

Biography:

Rebecca advises on a wide range of UK and cross-border tax matters including real estate, finance, M&A, group tax planning and fund investment structuring.

Rebecca has particular expertise in advising the real estate sector, with experience in investment structuring, the acquisition and disposal of real estate, the development of commercial and residential property as well as real estate financing.

Rebecca is also a Chartered Tax Adviser and also contributes to Tolley's Property Taxation.

Biography:

I am an accountant with expertise in various domains such as bookkeeping, tax compliance, and VAT. I have a strong background in financial accounting and reporting, as well as in auditing and assurance.

I am proficient in using various accounting software and tools to manage and analyze data. I am also familiar with the latest accounting standards and regulations, and I can help clients with their tax planning and filing needs.

I am a contributing author to the Bulgaria country guide in Tolley’s EU/Global VAT.

Biography:

Chris joined the Tolley Exam Training team in 2012 to teach on a range of tax exam courses including ATT and CTA.

Chris started his career with Deloitte where he qualified as a chartered accountant and then progressed to do his CTA exams where he was a Stanley Spofforth Medal winner.  He then spent a number of years with Kaplan.

Chris is a well-known personality in the tax world, particularly in the North-East, where he has taught tax on a wide range of exam courses and CPD events. He was a committee member of the North East Branch of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (having previously been Chairman).

He teaches mainly on Taxation of Individuals and Owner Managed Businesses and is Head of the Newcastle centre.

Biography:

Briony advises on all aspects of UK employment law, acting for both employers and employees, and advising on both contentious and non-contentious matters.

Briony advises on litigation in the Employment Tribunal, including claims relating to unfair dismissal and discrimination. Briony also has experience in Data Subject Access Requests, preparing policies and staff handbooks, drafting contracts of employment and advising in relation to settlement agreements.

Biography:

Richard Dew's practice is a barrister, whose practice is focused on Wills, Estates and Trusts and related professional negligence. His practice is predominantly litigation, and he is frequently involved in large and complex claims. He also advises and represents in Court of Protection matters and provides expert advice in respect of tax and tax planning (principally capital taxation). Chambers UK 2014 describe him as having "superb powers of analysis," and that he "instantly impresses with his intellect. He is excellent with clients and is just as capable on his feet as when handling the paperwork." Previous editions say he is  a "'superb junior,' who combines strong academic credentials … with a flair for litigation and ADR". He is a member of STEP and ACTAPS. He is an author of Parker's Will Precedents and of Tolley's IHT Planning as well as a contributor to numerous books and articles.

Biography:

Phil Vernon is the Head of Business Rates projects at PwC, and has been advising clients on local property tax issues for the last 15 years. He was formerly Head of Business Rates for Liberata UK, who provided an outsourced revenues service for Sheffield City Council.

At PwC, Phil provides public and private sector clients with advice on complex rating matters, provides legal analysis on points of law and advises clients on how rating practice interacts with rating law. Phil also assists corporate clients in their rating appeals, up to and including Valuation Tribunals and the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber).

Phil has been an Honors member of the Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation (IRRV) since 2002 and has 30 years experience in local taxation law and practice.

Biography:

Have worked in VAT since 1974. Joined HMRC and worked there for 15 years before joining Grant Thornton. Currently working in the National Tax Office of Grant Thornton providing technical help and knowledge management to the Grant Thornton VAT practice.

My specialism is VAT & Aircraft and I have a portfolio of aviation clients ranging from owners of private jets, to air operators, fixed based operators, aircraft engineers and freelance pilots.