Leadership & Practice
Our People
Senior judgment on every mandate. Direct access to the adviser doing the thinking.
Velten Advisors is deliberately small. That is what allows senior judgment to be applied to every mandate rather than rationed across a leverage pyramid. The people who scope a mandate are the people who deliver it.
Accreditations & Qualifications
- • Solicitor (Australia)
- • CPA (Australia)
- • Accredited Tax Adviser (Singapore and Hong Kong)
- • TEP (STEP)
- • Certified Family Office Adviser (Singapore)
- • Accredited Director (SID)
Founder
Michael Velten
Founder · Velten Advisors
Michael Velten was Senior Partner at Deloitte Southeast Asia. With four decades across international law firms, the Big Four and senior in-house roles at global financial institutions, he brings multidisciplinary judgment to every mandate: evaluating structural, legal, financial and governance dimensions simultaneously.
He began his career in Melbourne in 1986 and has been based in Asia since 1992, practising across Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore. He joined Deloitte in 2013 to build a financial services tax practice in Singapore that did not then exist, and by his retirement in February 2025 led the Asia-Pacific financial services tax practice. Before that he led the Asia ex-Japan tax function at Goldman Sachs, sitting on the Asia Federation Leadership Team and the Global Transfer Pricing Operating Committee, and served as Group Head of Tax at CITIC CLSA through a multi-year pre-sale transformation of the tax function. Earlier partnerships were at Baker McKenzie and PwC, following practice at Mallesons Stephen Jaques.
That combination: adviser, in-house leader, and practice builder: is what shapes the advice. He has seen how structures perform from the inside of the institutions that hold them, not only from across the table.
Degrees & Executive Education
BCom, LLB, MTax (Melbourne) · LLM (National University of Singapore) · MBA (UNE) · International Directors Programme, INSEAD
Member, Singapore Institute of Directors · Member, Singapore Fund Directors Association
Published Contributions & Keynotes
Key Focus Areas
- • Singapore Corporate Tax
- • International Tax & Cross-Border Transactions
- • Tax Research & Analysis
- • Corporate Tax Advisory
Tax Advisory
Xavier Ong
Tax Associate · Velten Advisors
Xavier Ong is a Tax Associate at Velten Advisors, where he focuses on Singapore corporate tax, international tax and cross-border transactions.
He supports clients across a range of advisory and transaction-related matters, including tax research and analysis, the Singapore tax implications of cross-border investments and arrangements, and broader corporate tax issues.
Prior to joining Velten Advisors, Xavier interned with Deloitte Private Tax, where he gained experience in tax advisory matters involving private clients and businesses.
Xavier holds a Bachelor of Accountancy from Singapore Management University, providing him with a strong foundation in accounting, taxation and financial reporting.
Education & Background
Bachelor of Accountancy, Singapore Management University
Deloitte Private Tax (Internship)
Arrange a Confidential Discussion
All enquiries are handled personally by Michael Velten and treated in strict confidence. Response within two business days.