Australian professional services firms celebrate China’s Year of the Snake

A number of Australia’s leading advisories have welcomed in the Lunar New Year, led by SW Accountants & Associates, formerly ShineWing, which has its headquarters located in Hong Kong.

The Lunar New Year is widely celebrated across East and Southeast Asia according to different calendars, but is marked in China on the first new moon which appears between late January and early February, falling this year on the January 29th.

In a cycle similar to that of the Western zodiac, 2025 is the Chinese ‘year of the snake’, or more specifically, the wood snake, which is said to portend a period of transformation and new beginnings through wisdom and personal growth.

To mark the occasion, many of Australia’s leading advisories have been sharing their best wishes on LinkedIn, including SW Accountants & Associates (originally ShineWing, but now abbreviated to SW), which was formed in 2015 out of the Melbourne practice of Moore Stephens but has since spread to Sydney, Brisbane and Perth, with a current headcount of around 400 professionals.

Reflecting the accounting and consulting firm’s Chinese ties, SW has been posting a series of messages ahead of and since the Lunar New Year, with a number of its three dozen or so partners bringing an Asian-Australian background, including international business leader David Chu, along with Daren Yeoh, Andy Lau, Vincent Shi, Bessie Zhang, Yang Shi, Michael Qin, and Leo Luan.

“May the ‘Year of the Snake’ bring you success, happiness, and good fortune,” the latter said. “One of SW’s best-kept secrets is that we are one of the leading professional services firms in Australia with a strong Asia-Pacific focus. Our clients can rely on us to navigate the complexities of cross-border trade, taxation and compliance, allowing them to focus on achieving their business goals.”

Other mid-market accounting and advisory firms have also been posting their Lunar New Year best wishes to LinkedIn, including RSM, PKF, Vincents, and Pitcher Partners, the latter which stated; “Wishing everyone a prosperous and joyful 'Year of the Snake'. May the year ahead bring you good fortune, exciting new opportunities, and the wisdom to navigate them all with success.”