(openPR) - International accounting and audit network Russell Bedford International appoints correspondent firm in Tirana, Albania.

PBM Sh.p.k., an accounting and audit practice, has been selected to represent the Russell Bedford International network as a correspondent in Albania.

The firm offers accounting, audit, tax, business advisory and support services to a wide range of businesses, financial institutions and not-for-profit organisations. A specialised unit, registered with the Albanian Institute of Authorized Chartered Auditors (IEKA), was added in 2001 to provide external audit services.

Located in the centre of the Albanian capital, Tirana, PBM has long experience in a number of industries including banking and insurance, energy and resources, telecommunications, manufacturing, transport, real estate, construction and agriculture.

In addition to supporting many multinational corporations, the firm has particular experience is the auditing of projects funded by international development and reconstruction agencies.

PBM has three partners.

Limos Malaj, the senior partner, specialises in audit and tax. He has some 38 years of professional experience, much of which was gained in important positions in the Albanian Ministry of Finance and in the Central Bank. He has been a Board Member of the Central Bank of Albania since 2004. Having studied Economics and obtained a PhD in Accounting, he is qualified as a Certified Public Auditor and is a member of the IEKA.

Zana Malaj, the firm’s founding partner, is an accounting specialist. She is a Certified Accountant and member of the Albanian Institute of Certified Accountants (IKM). She gained more than 20 years of professional experience as a chief financial officer in industry and in the public sector before establishing her accounting firm in 1998.

Petrit Malaj began his professional career as an accountant with the firm and is now the managing partner. He obtained a degree in Economics at the University of Tirana before studying Banking and Finance at Georgetown University, Washington DC, and obtaining his MBA at the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse. Specialising in banking and financial institutions, he is a Certified Public Auditor and member of the IEKA. He is also a visiting lecturer at the Universitas Fabrefacta Optime private university in Tirana.

For more information, contact Petrit Malaj on +355 42 228 964. Alternatively, visit the websites www.pbm.al and www.russellbedford.com.

Note to Editors

Established in 1983, Russell Bedford International is a global network of independent firms of accountants, auditors, tax advisers and business consultants.

Ranked as one of the world's top 15 accounting and audit networks, Russell Bedford is represented by some 460 partners, 5000 staff and 200 offices in more than 70 countries in Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific.

All Russell Bedford affiliates are well-established firms offering international business advice and services to local and multinational clients. Most provide a full range of services comprising accounting, auditing, tax advice, general business guidance and financial consulting. In addition, many have special expertise in particular fields, such as international taxation or information technology.

In January 2008 Russell Bedford International was named one of the first 17 full members of the IFAC Forum of Firms after reporting it had implemented a globally coordinated quality assurance programme, committed to the use of International Standards on Auditing (ISAs), and met other specific ethics requirements.

Russell Bedford International
tax, accounting, audit network, international CPA firm
For more information, contact Petrit Malaj on +355 42 228 964. Alternatively, visit the websites www.pbm.al and www.russellbedford.com.

Russell Bedford House
250 City Road, London EC1V 2QQ
United Kingdom