Family Office is a much used term that is applied to variety of collected services that are targeted to family wealth. However, it is a concept that has history tracing back to J D Rockefeller in the 1870s who reputedly established the first recognised family office. Family Offices have developed and grown in use since then. There have been a small number of family offices operating in Asia for many years; until 2014 which saw the beginning of an explosion of family offices being created across Asia and particularly in China. These family offices are different in style and content to the traditional style originated in the West but they aim to serve the wealth management needs of their clients.
There is no standard definition of a Family Office, what form it should take, what services it should provide, who should be involved in its management or how it should operate. It’s essence is to properly and effectively service the wealth management needs of the person or family it serves. As a result, Family Offices are as diverse in form and content as the families that use them. Family Offices were originally created to serve a single family (“Single Family Office”) but evolved, principally through the desire to offset operating cost, into organisations that serviced multiple families (“Multi-Family Offices”). These were organisations that employed and managed the wealth assets and succession plans of single or multiple families on a cost sharing basis. More recently, a hybrid version has been established and grown quickly which are businesses, independent of their clients, which provide a variety of services (directly or in conjunction with partners) to multiple clients on a fee basis.
Which type of family office, providing what services and which in location that is best for you and your family wealth and succession needs are complex questions. Capital Solutions can help you identify your needs, the services you require, the form they should take and the partners you should use.
We look forward to finding the best solutions for your needs. Please contact us.