BDO adds trade & customs specialist Daniel Rae as partner in Sydney
Professional services firm BDO has brought in Daniel Rae as a partner in its international trade & customs team, adding two decades of both industry and advisory experience.
Based out of Sydney, Rae crosses to BDO after spending close to eight years at KPMG, before which he worked in supply chain and operations roles for the likes of food and transport companies Fonterra and Mainfreight in New Zealand and China.
BDO’s Sydney office managing partner Grant Saxon noted that international trade had become a much more challenging environment for Australian businesses, with shifting regulations, tariffs, and supply chain pressures creating both risks and opportunities.
“Daniel’s experience spans both advisory and industry roles, which gives him a strong understanding of the challenges businesses face when managing complex supply chains and regulatory requirements,” Saxon stated. “His combination of deep technical expertise and practical commercial experience will be valuable to our clients operating across international markets.”
A commerce degree-holder from the University of Canterbury with a business law masters from the University of Sydney, Rae specialises in advising importers, exporters, and manufacturers across the retail, life sciences, industrial, alcohol, and energy, mining & resources sectors on the trade-related aspects of their international supply chains and manufacturing operations.
This includes supporting clients – a global apparel company, ASX-listed supermarket chain, and major wine & alcohol producer previously among them – on complex licensing requirements, import & export regulations, and their reporting obligations, along with identifying opportunities to mitigate their indirect tax and duty costs and streamline operational compliance through technology.
“Having worked inside international supply chains, I understand that trade and customs issues aren’t just technical or compliance matters; they can have a real impact on how a business operates, its costs, and ability to grow,” Rae said. “The trade environment is becoming more complex and less predictable, so businesses need advice that is practical and grounded in commercial reality.”
Rae joins practice leader Leonie Ferretter as a partner in BDO’s international trade, customs & excise duties team, with Ferretter having likewise crossed from KPMG in 2023 after having built and led the Big Four firm’s own Australian and Asia Pacific offering. The practice works together with BDO’s transfer pricing team, along with its supply chain and infrastructure advisory lines.
