BGD group strengthens bonds with Portuguese community
Report & Photos by Luis Aparício
“We’re ready to grow, “ said Filomena Silveira, advisory partner in the BGD Group.
Born in Terceira, Azores, Filomena Silveira moved to Canada 35 years ago with the goal of developing a professional career, but not without becoming a mother first.
She decided to learn English and to invest in accounting courses, which led her to earn degrees in Accounting and in Commerce.
Silveira has always sought to have an active civic participation in the Portuguese community. In 2009, she met one of the BGD Group partners, just after moving to Mississauga in 2007. But it was not until 2013 that she would join the firm. The opening of the Mississauga office took place in June 2013.
Currently, the group has more than a dozen partners. Recognizing a faster than expected growth, prompted the BGD group to expand. Filomena Silveira has no doubts: “We are ready to grow.”
Expansion
As a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA), Filomena notes that the relationship with the community (including the Lusophone community) has strengthened and the group now has greater visibility with a growing client base.
Silveira speaks of a group of licensed professionals with extensive experience, prepared to provide professional advice to anyone who wants to start a business or intends to boost their growth in the market. The idea is also to centralize services and expand both domestically and internationally, reaching different communities.
Among the priorities is the expansion of the BGD group in Southern Ontario, especially in the Toronto metropolitan area (GTA).The first step was taken in February this year with the opening of a “satellite” office on Dundas Street West, Toronto, an area with a huge Portuguese concentration.
BGD is a professional firm providing audit, tax and advisory services to private enterprises, public companies, high-net worth individuals and non-profit organizations.
The BGD group has a team of qualified professionals offering accounting, auditing and tax and business consulting services.
Filomena Silveira
As a Licensed Professional Accountant with more than 20 years of experience, she serves clients in a variety of industries such as consumer food packaging companies, construction and real estate, manufacturing, mining, retail and other professions.
Her extensive and diverse experience includes leading projects in a Canadian supermarket chain with the implementation of SAP, business processes, internal controls procedures and consulting services for a variety of businesses.
Filomena is an active member of the Toronto and Mississauga Board of Trade, the Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce, the Federation of Portuguese-Canadian Businessmen and Professionals (FPCBP) and the Women’s Mining Association.
