Family offices increasingly setting up in new jurisdictions to meet family needs

• Four in five (78%) family offices have opened offices in different jurisdictions over the past five years, due to family members increasingly moving abroad or living in different countries
• Almost nine in ten (86%) predict this trend of family members having multiple citizenship to increase over the next five years

New global research* from Ocorian, the specialist global provider of services to high-net-worth individuals and family offices, financial institutions, asset managers and corporates, shows that family offices are opening more physical offices in different jurisdictions as family members move abroad or live in different countries and the trend is set to increase in the next five years.

Ocorian’s international study among more than 300 family office professionals collectively responsible for around $155 billion assets under management found 78% have opened more offices in different jurisdictions over the past five years.

The main reason for opening more offices is because family members are increasingly moving abroad or living in different countries cited by 79%. But 57% said more offices were needed as investment portfolios have diversified or become more sophisticated and 41% have done so in response to risk posed by geopolitical issues. Around 40% open more offices for tax and regulatory issues while 11% said they’ve already opened more offices in different jurisdictions because of a skills shortage.

The trend of opening more offices in different jurisdictions because of family members moving abroad looks set to increase in the future. When asked specifically whether they’ve seen an increase in family members having different or multiple citizenships or residing in different countries over the past five years, almost nine in ten (89%) family office professionals said they have. Of these, 86% predict this trend to increase in the next five years, with 9% saying it would increase dramatically.

More than a third (36%) of family office professionals surveyed said they currently have three physical offices, followed by around a quarter (27%) who have more than five. Around 15% have four, 14% have two, 5% have five and just 4% have 1 physical office.

A range of considerations come into effect when deciding where in the world to open a physical office, with the top issue being access to professional services and related infrastructure. This is followed by access to the right talent and skilled professionals.

Michael Harman, Commercial Director, Private Client at Ocorian commented: “There has been a significant increase in the numbers of physical offices opened by high-net-worth families in the last five years, and what our research shows is the market trend we see where clients are setting up their own family offices, wherever they happen to be, rather than using an existing family office. People want to live internationally and also have their investment interests internationally based – there are evident upsides to diversifying in this way, not least in respect of managing risk.

“So, we’d expect this trend is only set to continue further in the next five years, and we expect to see more family offices setting up new physical offices in new jurisdictions, indeed our research suggests we can look to locations such as the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong, and Singapore for this growth. However, the strongholds still remain highly relevant – jurisdictions like the UK remain steadfastly used – even US individuals setting up family offices want access to such established regulatory and legislative environments as the UK offers, this is also the case for the crown dependencies; strongholds that also boast a deep and experienced talent pool. There is a lot to consider when deciding where to set up, but having access to the right professional services and infrastructure is essential.”

Ocorian’s award winning dedicated family office team provides a seamless and holistic approach to the challenges and opportunities families face. Its service is built on long-term personal relationships that are founded on a deep understanding of what matters to family office clients. Its global presence means Ocorian can provide bespoke structures and services for international families no matter where they live.