A version of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly guide to the high-net-worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
Keeping wealth in the family is easier than controlling how your heirs invest it.
For investment firms of ultra-wealthy families, the stakes are especially high. A recent Bank of America survey of 335 family offices, with 60% of respondents holding at least $500 million in assets, found that 87% had yet to pass down assets to the next generation.
More than a third of family offices with principals fully involved in firm operations expected heirs to change the family office’s mission or purpose. For firms with principals who are less involved with decision-making, the share jumps to 73%, according to the survey.
“It’s more than just passing down the wealth. We know that next generation will usher in a new era of investing, of how they think about philanthropy, how they use technology,” Bank of America’s Elizabeth Thiessen told Inside Wealth.
