Rajah & Tann has formed a strategic alliance with Indonesian firm Assegaf Hamzah & Partners in a bid to further tap one of Asia's fastest growing markets. 

The Singapore firm signed the agreement to form an exclusive relationship just four months after commencing operations in Myanmar and Cambodia, as it strives to ramp up its regional presence.

Assegaf Hamzah, Indonesia's fourth largest law firm and previously Rajah & Tann's 'best friend' in the market, is a full-service outfit founded by Fikri Assegaf and Chandra Hamzah in 2001.

It currently has 60 fee earners, with core practice areas including capital markets, banking and finance. It also has capabilities in antitrust, aviation, technology, telecommunications, M&A and arbitration.

The alliance is effective from this month, and will give Rajah & Tann better access to Indonesia – which is currently does not allow foreign firms to launch their own offices.

Earlier this month, ex-Freshfields partner at the firm, Chester Toh, told Legal Week that Indonesia was an extremely important market to the firm given its fast growth.

"We are always looking at good firms to work with in markets where we are not present, and where we see a natural fit in terms of a good independent firm.

"[With Indonesia], the statistics speak for themselves, this is the region to be in."

In a statement, the firm's managing partner Lee Eng Beng, SC, said: "This strategic tie-up we have forged with Assegaf Hamzah is one of the most significant and exciting since we embarked on our regionalisation drive.

"From this month, Rajah & Tann clients can look to a fully-fledged integrated team offering the broadest range of law services across all the major markets in Asean.

"In Indonesia in particular, they will be well served by very experienced and responsive lawyers who have gained a reputation for their commercial acumen and strong client-servicing culture."

Rajah & Tann, one of Singapore's big four law firms, currently has more than 400 fee earners, and is understood to be the only regional law firm with a physical presence and full-service capability in eight out of the 10 Asean countries.

In January, the firm joines forced with NK Legal in Myanmar and R&T Sok & Heng Law Office in Cambodia, citing both markets as strategically important given the increasing demand for corporate legal services.

Its network now includes offices in Shanghai, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, in addition to an associate office in Malaysia and its recent tie up Indonesia.