Soon after graduating, Floris joined Derks and Partners’ Utrecht office, working as an Attorney at Law for four years. From 1984-86, he was Legal Adviser for the Curaçao International Trust Company, and in 1987 spent a year working as the Corporate Secretary to the Board of a leading Dutch reinsurance company.
Floris was Managing Director and subsequently General Manager of Citco Nederland BV over a period of three years, and early in 1991 he joined Holland Intertrust Corporation BV, working as General Manager and also serving on the board of the Intertrust Group.
Floris joined Equity Trust at the start of January 1994. Not yet 40, he was a relative youngster on the board of the company, which had less than 60 employees and was part of the Dutch legal firm Trenité Van Doorne.In 1997 Equity Trust was acquired by the private bank Insinger de Beaufort, signalling the start of a period of rapid expansion. Insinger’s strength in the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey, as well as the British Virgin Islands, complemented Equity Trust’s strongholds of The Netherlands and the Dutch dependent territory of Curaçao.
At this time, Equity Trust did not yet have a significant presence in Asia. However Floris co-operated with Hong Kong-based trust company Brumby and this connection, underpinned by a good personal relationship with Brumby’s Frederik van Tuyll, eventually led to the acquisition of Brumby, followed by the purchase of another Hong Kong trust company, Matheson Trust.
Floris and Frederik became colleagues on the board of Equity Trust, where they remain fellow directors to this day. Floris is Group Head of Business Lines and, in September 2009, Frederik was appointed Chief Executive Officer.
The two Dutchmen were closely involved when Equity Trust became an independent company, bought by the UK-based venture capital company Candover in 2003. Since then the group’s expansion has continued, with significant acquisitions including the trust operation of Standard Chartered Bank in 2004, the trust operation of ABN Amro in 2005, the Luxembourg domiciliation and company management business of Ernst & Young in 2006 and Custom House Fund Services in 2008.
Floris is ultimately responsible for Equity Trust’s five business lines: Corporate Services, Private Clients, Structured Finance, International Incorporations and Fund Services.
Floris’ workload includes the position of MD of Equity Trust’s Dutch office, a role he shares with Jaap van Burg, and he also focuses on the Japanese client portfolio, which includes a considerable number of large quoted enterprises that use Dutch structures administered by Equity Trust.
Travelling to meet clients remains important, and where possible Floris combines such client meetings with trips to visit Equity Trust’s offices around the world, in order to keep abreast of the global picture and maintain a good rapport with colleagues, clients and intermediaries. However, the majority of his time is spent in Amsterdam.
Floris is a member of the International Fiscal Association (IFA) and the International Bar Association (IBA), as well as Vice-Chairman of the International Management Services Association (VIMS).The IFA was established in 1938 with its headquarters in the Netherlands. It is the only non-governmental and non-sectoral international organisation dealing with fiscal matters, and has around 12,000 members in more than 100 countries.
The IFA’s objects are the study and advancement of international and comparative law in regard to public finance, specifically international and comparative fiscal law and the financial and economic aspects of taxation. These aims are achieved through an annual Congress as well as regular research studies and publications.
The IBA, established in 1947, is the world’s leading organisation of international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies.
The IBA influences the development of international law reform and shapes the future of the legal profession throughout the world. It has a membership of more than 35,000 individual lawyers and 197 bar associations and law societies spanning all continents.
The VIMS, established in the early nineties and based in Amsterdam, represents the interests of the larger trust offices in The Netherlands. The VIMS’ main objectives are to maintain contact with (Dutch) government organisations and to participate in consultative bodies and committees with the aim of improving the business climate for foreign companies in the Netherlands.