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The whole area of trusts and trustees is absolutely
central to families seeking to preserve and transition
wealth, and to keep their affairs as private as possible.
In this world of comprehensive regulation and
supervision today, the role of the trust is not as
a means of hiding wealth, but as a transparent,
reportable, and legitimate means to house and
protect assets, and facilitate simplified reporting
and transmission to the younger family generations.
Looking from the wider angle
Additionally, for many families, especially those
where the founder patriarch or matriarch is very
old, or indeed where one of them has already passed
away, there is a well-documented inclination towards
philanthropic and social legacy investments that
elevate the family name and heritage well beyond
the pursuit of, or preservation of, their remarkable
wealth. Again, the family office can serve as the
conduit and enabler for such initiatives.
Ultra-wealthy Asian families have seen what the likes
of the Gates Foundation have been achieving and
see the merits in such philanthropy, especially as,
if viewed somewhat cynically, it often makes sound
business sense for them to spread their names and
the wealth to further social "causes" in the region or
indeed globally.
What percentage of Asia's billionaires are
first generation?
85%
15%
Firstgen
Nextgen
18