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ABOUT BETTY

Betty Gervasini – Your Strategic Partner for Asia Growth

Entrepreneur, tax strategist, and Asia market entry specialist with 25+ years across HR, accounting, and legal advisory. Founder of HR Forte, the SaaS payroll platform built for Asia's compliance complexity. Partner at Acclime Group.

25+ Years of Experience 7 LANGUAGES
BettyG Photo

25+ Years of Experienced in Navigating the Complexity of Doing Business in Asia

 

Betty G

"Believe in yourself, always do things with passion."

Academic Foundation

BSc (Hons) in Accounting from Queen's University Belfast. Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA) certified by ICAI Ireland since 1999. Certified Lead Auditor for ISO 27001 (2024).

Asia Specialist

Deep operational expertise across Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Hong Kong, and Cambodia. Fluent in English, Malay, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien, Vietnamese, and Italian.

HR Forte Systems

Founder of HR Forte — a cloud-based SaaS HR and payroll platform purpose-built for Asia compliance. Live payrolls running in 7 countries, with expansion into Indonesia, UAE, and LATAM in 2026.

Award-Winning Leader

Recognised by APAC Business Headlines, CIO Advisor, Enterprise World, CXO2.0 Dubai, Fluxx Hong Kong, and listed in the British Encyclopedia 5th Edition as a "Successful Person in Malaysia."

Acclime Group Partner

Partner at Acclime Group, a leading regional corporate services firm headquartered in Hong Kong. Finex, my Vietnam-founded company, was acquired by Acclime in December 2020.

My Philosophy

"Believe in yourself, always do things with passion. Sharing a passion for excellence."

From audit to entrepreneurship — now based in Italy, advising globally.

Major Milestones

From audit rooms in Ireland to boardrooms in Asia - an amazing career journey so far...

Click each one below to read more
2006

Founded Finex, Vietnam

Built Finex from the ground up into a leading corporate services company with 53 employees and over US$2 million in annual revenue, providing full-suite corporate services across Vietnam.

2011

Leaderonomics Feature

Featured in a Leaderonomics interview on how to start and scale a business in Vietnam, sharing entrepreneurial insights with a regional audience.

2012

BFM 89.9 Radio Interview

Invited to speak on Malaysia's BFM 89.9 The Business Station on the topic of doing business in Vietnam, reaching thousands of business listeners.

2018

Founded HR Forte Systems

Launched HR Forte Systems, a SaaS cloud HR and payroll platform based in Singapore, covering Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, and Cambodia.

2019

APAC Business Headlines & CIO Advisor Awards

Finex was awarded recognition by APAC Business Headlines and CIO Advisor for outstanding quality of services rendered to global companies and excellence in Staffing & Recruitment across Asia-Pacific.

2020

Acclime Group Acquisition

Finex was successfully acquired by Acclime Group, a regional corporate services firm headquartered in Hong Kong. Betty became a Partner at Acclime Group, expanding her regional footprint.

2023

British Encyclopedia Listing

Listed in the British Encyclopedia 5th Edition as a "Successful Person in Malaysia" — a recognition of two decades of entrepreneurial and professional impact across Asia.

2024

ISO 27001 Lead Auditor

Passed the Certified Lead Auditor examination for ISO 27001.

2024

Enterprise World Cover . CIO Women

Featured as cover story in CIO Women and Enterprise World magazines.

2024

CXO2.0 Dubai Award

Received the Business Leadership Excellence Award at CXO2.0 in Dubai.

2025

Expert of the Year in Technology — Fluxx, Hong Kong

Awarded Expert of the Year in Technology by Fluxx in Hong Kong, recognising HR Forte Systems' contribution to technology sustainability. Featured across global publications including CIO Women, Medium, Substack, and DEV.to.

IN THE PRESS

Media Features & Publications


Medium (2025)
Published on Medium, reaching 140M+ monthly visitors globally.
 
Substack (2025)
Insights on HR tech, business scaling, and digital transformation.
 
Times Square Reporter (2025)
Featured spotlighting global entrepreneurs and innovation leaders.
 
DEV.to (2025)
Featured on the DEV Community reaching 13M+ monthly visits.
 
Live Positively (2025)
Featured on global wellness platform with 35,000 daily page views.
 
Steemit (2025)
Published on blockchain-based platform: "Empowering Business Success Through Innovation."
 
IndiBlogHub (2025)
Insights on leadership, HR innovation, and business growth.
BettyG (1)

How We Can Work Together?

Whether you are just getting started or ready to transform how your entire operation runs, there is a way in.

Mode 1: Asia Market Entry

For companies entering a new Asian market for the first time.

I become your project lead for the full company setup journey from structure advice and licensing through to post-licensing compliance, ICP coordination, and your first payroll run.

You focus on your business. I handle the setup maze.

Best for: Companies entering Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Cambodia, or

Mode 2: Compliance & Operations Review

For companies already operating in Asia but feeling like something might be missing.

I conduct a full compliance and operations audit, reviewing your current setup, identifying gaps, and building a remediation roadmap.

Think of it as a health check for your Asia operation.

Best for: Companies that set up quickly and are not 100% sure everything was done right.

Mode 3: Digitalization & AI Integration Project

For companies ready to stop doing things manually and start building a smarter operation.I lead your digitalization journey from end to end, mapping processes, selecting tools, managing implementation, and ensuring your team is equipped to run the new system.

HR Forte can be part of the solution, but this is not a product pitch. It is a transformation project.

Best for: Companies with 100+ employees in Asia who are still running HR, payroll, or compliance on spreadsheets and manual processes.

Why work with me instead of a local consultancy?

HRF Web Photo Landing Page (2)

Still think a local firm is the safer bet? Here is what they will not tell you upfront.

Most foreign companies entering Vietnam do the same thing:
  • They Google "company setup Vietnam",
  • Get a few quotes from local ICPs,
  • Pick the cheapest one, and
  • Assume the job is done.
Some of them are right. Most of them are not. The problem is not that local firms are bad. Some are excellent. The problem is that you have no way of knowing which one you are getting until you are already six months in, dealing with a compliance gap that nobody flagged, a tax registration that was never completed, or a labor registration that was filed incorrectly. I have seen this happen too many times. And it is almost never the result of bad intentions. It is the result of:
  • A poorly defined scope,
  • A provider who was not asked the right questions, and
  • No one sitting in the middle making sure everything connects.
That is exactly the gap I fill.

The "Cheaper" Trap

Here is the real math on cheap.
A local ICP quotes you USD 1,500 for company setup.
You sign.
 
Three months later, you discover your post-licensing obligations were not included in the scope.
You need a separate engagement for tax registration, social insurance, and labor registration.
That is another USD 800 to USD 1,200.
 
Then your first payroll run is delayed because your bank account was not set up in time.
That costs you a week of operations.
 
Then a routine inspection reveals your business registration does not cover one of your actual business activities, and you need to amend your license.
That is another USD 500 to USD 1,000, plus two to four weeks of delay.
 
Suddenly, the "cheap" option has cost you more than double - in money, in time, and in stress.
 
Cheap is only cheap when the scope is complete.
Most of the time, it is not.

What I Do Differently?

Betty Gervasini, FCA

I am your single point of contact

Not another vendor to manage.
 
When you engage multiple providers independently (a law firm for licensing, an accounting firm for tax, a payroll vendor for HR),
you become the project manager of your own compliance setup.
 
You are the one chasing updates, reconciling conflicting advice, and hoping nothing falls through the cracks at the handover points between providers.
 
I take that off your plate entirely.
 
My scope?
I coordinate your entire provider network from licensing through to your first payroll run, ensuring every piece connects, every deadline is met, and every compliance obligation is covered.
You deal with one person.
I deal with everyone else.

I know the market rates

and I will make sure you are not overpaying.
 
Because I have been operating in this market for over two decades, I know what things should cost.
 
I source a minimum of two to three competitive quotes from trusted providers within my professional network,
review each one for scope (not just price), negotiate on your behalf, and present you with a clear comparison - scope, fees, timeline, and my recommendation with reasoning.
 
You do not just get a quote.
You get a market-validated decision.

I define the scope so nothing gets missed.

A poorly scoped ICP engagement is the single biggest cause of compliance failures in Asia.
 
Most companies only discover the gaps months after setup - missing registrations, incorrect tax classifications, labor obligations that were never addressed.
 
These are not random mistakes.
They are the predictable result of a scope that was never properly defined.
 
Before any provider touches your setup, I map every mandatory compliance obligation relevant to your business model, define a detailed scope of services, identify any sector-specific sub-licenses required, and build milestone checkpoints into the engagement.
 
Nothing is left to interpretation.
 
The result: a fully compliant setup, zero re-submissions, and a clean compliance foundation from day one.

A local firm can execute but...

What they cannot do is think strategically about your entire compliance journey before it starts, coordinate across multiple providers to make sure nothing falls through the cracks, and tell you honestly when something is wrong with the scope even if it means more work for them.

Let's Talk About Your Asia Business Needs

Whether you're looking to enter Asian markets, streamline payroll, or explore a partnership, let's talk.

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