Notes

How wealth management companies can prepare for turbulent times [Farnoush Farsiar]
Generational change. Global mobility. Technology-driven change. Farnoush Farsiar of EU Today writes these are just some of the major changes that affect family offices and fundamentally threatening their operations and practices.

Family offices are increasingly catering to the younger, mobile generation. The financial crisis and the democratisation and trading online have made clients more interested in their investment choices. They are seeking more control and knowledge and do not want discretionary portfolios that are managed in a jiffy.

These changes, which occur at a time of unparalleled political and economic instability are a sign of the end of the traditional fee-based family office model. Farnoush Farsiar If an office attempts to keep its old ways of doing business, they'll soon be abandoned by the very people they supposed to help. They must change and be more entrepreneurial with their approach to investment management in order to offer a true benefit proposition to UHNWIs.

https://twitter.com/brexitcentral/status/1151733390485467136 Family offices are available in various sizes and styles. However, they must prioritize efficiency and agility and improving the efficiency of their services. The best service for clients will be offered by a small group of advisors who have the ability to swiftly implement new technologies, and bring on board external experts when needed. Farnoush Farsiar As the boundaries between private and family banking are blurred the most successful firms will have a small team of advisors that can swiftly adopt new technologies and bring on board external specialists when required. This allows the firm to offer the best service to clients.

Success will result from the capacity to profit from more traditional, reputation-based and network-based approaches to deal sourcing, whilst also using online methods to find deals and opportunities. Deal sourcing platforms on the internet are only one of the tools that wealth managers and agile private offices can readily install instead of large heavy-handed banks that are burdened by bureaucratic bureaucracy of large firms. Dealmakers are able to access and analyze huge numbers of deals at the same time this is a huge savings in time and resources.

Wealthica and other services on the internet are changing the way family offices interact with their clients. Farnoush Farsiar They automatically consolidate the investments of a variety of sources, and put clients in regular contact with their investments. This is a far way from the days when wealth managers would only offer periodic updates to their clients' progress.

They are just tools that allow wealth managers to boost their effectiveness and speed. The most crucial aspect to consider when investing is the strategy that supports these tools. The best strategy will combine the traditional and the modern. Farnoush Farsiar That means that you should continue looking for opportunities on real estate however, you should also consider investing in areas like food security or climate science. Impact investing has certainly "arrived" within the world of family offices. According to the UBS Global Family Office Report 2018 one-third of family-owned businesses are engaged in impact investing with the majority expecting to increase their involvement in the near future. While there are some challenges in this field, such as the measurement of the impact of investments and conducting due diligence the next generation HNWIs/UHNWIs will expect their family offices to identify and secure these types of investments. My company, Plato Capital, is a small investment bank that draws on the experience of its founders in family offices, large banks and the tech industry, to provide investment advice with an emphasis on the entrepreneurial. Our clients are able to deal with risk and earn the most value for their investment due to our local network.

Through blending the traditional with the modern, adjusting to the demands of the new generation, and preparing to be risk-averse with their own structures and techniques, wealth managers of all kinds can stay relevant and prosper even in the midst of challenging times.
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