PwC has entered Indonesia adding local law firm Melli Darsa & Co (MDC) to its network, through which the accountancy giant can offer legal services in South East Asia’s largest economy.

The Indonesia move is PwC’s latest expansion in to its legal services business in the South East Asia region.

MDC is established in 2002 by corporate lawyer Melli Darsa, who is the firm’s senior partner. It currently has six partners. The firm entered into an association with legacy Squire Sanders in 2013, but the relationship ended in 2015 following a team exit from the local firm.

As a member of PwC’s global network, the MDC remains an independent local firm and works closely with other Indonesian member firms of PwC that offer services in assurance, tax, financial advisory and business consulting.

“Business and legal issues today are more intertwined than ever before. Multinational corporations operating in Indonesia and the region see the value in working with a global professional services leader,” said Irhoan Tanudiredja, senior partner of PwC Indonesia.

“As a member firm of the PwC network, Melli Darsa & Co will provide a competitive edge for clients who appreciate the benefits of working with a global brand. It also gives Indonesian businesses, and those seeking to enter the Indonesian market, a wider choice and the ability to access the reach of a global professional services network,” he added.

For MDC, the ability to provide multidisciplinary solutions to clients is a driver behind its decision to join PwC.

“We are seeing more and more companies looking for forward-looking practical and efficient multidisciplinary solutions, often with a single point of contact,” said Darsa.

“In this respect, MDC joining the PwC network sets a new bar in corporate legal and financial/business advisory service in Indonesia that allows us to better support clients in achieving their competitive advantage through a broader multidisciplinary and more integrated approach.”

There has been a string of changes in international firms’ relationships in Indonesia in the past few years. For example, Hogan Lovells ended its previous tie-up with local firm Hermawan Juniarto after three and a half years in 2015 and entered into a new association with newly established Dewi Negara Fachi & Partners (DNFP) last year. DLA Piper separated from its ally Ivan Almaida Baely & Firmansyah (IAB&F) three years after it teamed up with the domestic firm. Norton Rose Fulbright switched its local ally from Susandarini & Partners to TNB & Partners in January 2016. Clifford Chance has also recently called it time with its exclusive association with Linda Widyati & Partners.

Prior to the Indonesia legal move, PwC Legal has expanded into key South East Asia markets such as Singapore and Vietnam. In Singapore, the accountancy giant hired two partners from international firms, real estate partner Natalie Breen from Norton Rose Fulbright and former Ashurst Singapore managing partner Keith McGuire, and subsequently launched a foreign law practice under the banner of PwC Legal International to focus on regional transactions and projects.

In Vietnam, it hired Gide Loyrette Nouel Vietnam head Nasir Dao to boost its operations in the country last year.