Originally from the UK, Andrew Fisher trained as an auditor at a top-tier accountancy firm in Manchester. He relocated to the south-west for several years as Audit Manager at another highly-respected UK firm, and then emigrated down under in 2002. Joining BG Private that same year, he set up the firm’s Audit & Assurance division from scratch and remains the head of this division.
Since 2002, the division has grown significantly under his guidance and leadership, now boasting two dedicated audit partners and around 15 highly specialised full-time team members.
Andrew Fisher has cultivated the division’s philosophy of remaining friendly and approachable while always maintaining high ethical standards. The team is known for its collaborative approach, working through any issues with clients to arrive at a mutually agreeable position. Clients appreciate continuity of staffing on audit engagements from year to year, and Andrew seeks to retain some of the best local practitioners in the industry.
Andrew was drawn to the analysis and problem-solving aspects of a career in audit and assurance, and his meticulous and detail-oriented nature help give clients confidence that material issues will be addressed.
Andrew prefers to remain directly accessible at all times for meetings and discussions, including attendance during the audit fieldwork. He ensures this ethos is mirrored by his team.
With his extensive experience in corporate audit and the NFP sector, Andrew has a strong interest in policy matters, and consumer and community support. He is also the firm’s quality assurance partner and focuses on ensuring that high ethical and audit quality standards are maintained throughout BG Private.
Andrew also sits on BG Private’s Advisory Board, which oversees the firm’s long-term strategy.
Outside the office, Andrew enjoys all manner of word games, and has competed successfully at numerous national and international Scrabble tournaments (he was runner-up in the 2011 World Championship). He was champion of Letters and Numbers season 1, and also enjoys solving and setting tough cryptic crosswords.
With an interest in progressive politics and LGBTI businesses, Andrew has also served as voluntary treasurer on the board of Melbourne Queer Film Festival, and other not-for-profit entities and associations.
Qualifications
- MA (Hons) from Oxford University in Classical and Modern Languages
- ASIC Registered Company Auditor (number 306364)
- Registered Superannuation Auditor (number 100056997)
- Registered Solicitor’s Trust External Examiner (number A0001868)
Memberships
- Fellow of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ)
- Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
Highly regarded in
- Corporate audit including AFSL engagements
- Trust account audits
- Financial accounting and reporting formats and disclosures
- Business valuation services
- Due diligence engagements
- Business systems and controls analysis
- Grant acquittal assignments
- Forensic and litigation support
- Company secretarial matters and corporate governance
Specialisations
- Strong not-for-profit audit and assurance expertise, with a number of high-profile arts and heritage clients, systems and standards bodies and other entities
- Expertise in AFSL audit and compliance review
- Trust account expertise including solicitors, real estate and others