Alvarez & Marsal Launches Tax Practice in Italy, Appoints Valentina Santini to Lead
New practice meets increasing demand for tax advisory services from businesses and individuals
Milan, 22nd June 2026 -- Global professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) continues the expansion of its global Tax capabilities through the establishment of A&M Tax Italy STP Srl. Managing Director and country Tax leader, Valentina Santini will build the new practice and has begun with a team of 18 senior local advisers.
The expansion marks the latest in a string of senior hires and new market entries for A&M Tax over the past year, including in Sweden, Ireland, the Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Thailand and Japan. This news further advances A&M’s presence in Italy, where the firm has recently built its Financial and Operational Turnaround and Transformation expertise, in addition to launching a Corporate Finance practice and M&A offering a year ago.
Ms. Santini, an M&A tax advisory specialist, brings more than 20 years’ experience working with multinational corporations, private equity clients and financial investors on complex domestic and cross-border transactions. Her expertise includes tax due diligence, extraordinary transactions, international tax structuring and post-deal tax integration. Before joining A&M, she was a Tax Equity Partner at Deloitte, where she held the role of Tax M&A Service Line Leader. She has led multidisciplinary teams across industrial, consumer and financial services sectors and supported clients on inbound and outbound investments, large M&A transactions and international tax matters. She also served as Client Service Executive for the Italy Desk in New York, supporting cross-border client activity.
Initially, Ms. Santini will collaborate with the following professionals to assemble the entity:
- Managing Director, Arnaldo Barbaro – Formerly a Partner at Deloitte, where he spent 18 years. A specialist in complex transfer pricing projects across industries, value chain analysis, intellectual property valuation and business restructuring for M&A transactions.
- Managing Director, Andrea Bravo – Formerly a Partner at Deloitte, where he spent 15 years. An expert in M&A, tax authority audits and tax due diligence processes, he supports clients with domestic direct and indirect taxes.
‘It is incredibly exciting to build a practice of collaborators dedicated to the Italian market, working closely with esteemed A&M Tax experts as well as Transaction Advisory and Corporate Finance professionals on a global platform,’ said Ms. Santini. ‘I look forward to supporting leading corporations and private equity clients with a differentiated offering.’
Marvin Rust, Head of A&M Tax EMEA, commented: ‘Establishing A&M Tax Italy STP Srl is a major milestone in our ongoing growth across Europe. We have a real opportunity to advise clients strategically and independently – free from audit conflicts. Valentina, Arnaldo and Andrea bring the reputation and networks to attract top talent as we build a premier practice in Milan.’
Ernesto ‘Ernie’ Perez, Global Head of A&M Tax, added: ‘Italy is one of Europe's most demanding tax markets – complex by design, highly scrutinised, and with strong transactional activity in M&A and private equity. Establishing our presence in Italy, with boots on the ground in Milan, reflects our commitment to being where our clients need us most. These are talented professionals and we have an ambitious platform. This is just the beginning of what we intend to build here.’
The Italian tax team offers comprehensive services – including M&A tax advisory, restructuring and financing advisory, international tax advisory, and compliance tax advisory. A&M supports organisations across all major industries, of all sizes, as well as corporate and financial investors in both domestic and international matters.
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About Alvarez & Marsal
Founded in 1983, Alvarez & Marsal is a leading global professional services firm. Renowned for its leadership, action and results, Alvarez & Marsal provides advisory, business performance improvement and turnaround management services, delivering practical solutions to address clients' unique challenges. With a world-wide network of experienced operators, world-class consultants, former regulators and industry authorities, Alvarez & Marsal helps corporates, boards, private equity firms, law firms and government agencies drive transformation, mitigate risk and unlock value at every stage of growth.
About Alvarez & Marsal Tax
Alvarez & Marsal Tax, part of Alvarez & Marsal (A&M), a global professional services firm, is an independent tax group made up of experienced tax professionals dedicated to providing customised tax advice to clients and investors across a broad range of industries. Its professionals extend A&M's commitment to offering clients a choice of advisers who are free from audit-based conflicts of interest and bring an unyielding commitment to delivering responsive client service. A&M Tax has offices in major metropolitan markets throughout the US, Latin America, APAC and EMEA.
To learn more, visit: AlvarezandMarsal.com.
