Three Major Trends Emerge at Alliance Partner Summit

Wealth Shift, Confidence, & the NextGen

PALM BEACH, Fla. & WHEATON, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Top leaders of the family wealth industry gathered recently to focus on ways to better serve their private client families. Looking strategically at what wealthy families need in 2013 and beyond, participants cited helping next generation family members cope with an enormous shift of wealth to the younger generation as one result of tax law changes in 2010-2012. The Alliance Partner Summit took place on February 6-7 in Palm Beach, Florida.

The summit participants also discussed how current tax laws change the long-term estate- and tax-planning outlook for wealthy families, and the importance of confidence and trust and what that means for families and wealth management. Leaders also held in-depth discussions about how to help families understand the differences among various family office business models and how to discern excellence in managing wealth and serving families in a vast array of wealth management offerings.

“The Alliance provides a rich environment for leaders in the family wealth industry to identify and consider the key drivers that impact families and the firms that serve them. Families need their advisors to be expert, confident and well-positioned to guide them through both the recent changes in the financial world and those to come,” said Loraine Tsavaris, Managing Director, Rockefeller & Co., and a Summit participant.

In their discussions, a number of attendees indicated that they plan to step up business development activities in the coming year to spur growth of their firms. Recent Alliance Research has found increasing disparities in growth among multifamily offices, as well as frustration among executives with the business development approaches.

Among The Alliance Partner Summit findings:

• Temporary tax cuts from 2010-2012 meant wealth transferred to next generations much earlier than is typical, resulting in younger family members being thrust into wealth responsibilities.
• More stable gift and inheritance tax exemptions allow for longer-term strategies than the past two years enabled.
• Trust and confidence is still an issue for many family members who may be considering changes in their service providers in the aftermath of the financial crisis.
• Multifamily offices are exploring ways to differentiate themselves from private banks or brokers, with a best-of-breed service offering for families.

“In the coming year(s), clients of SFOs and MFOs will care less about alpha and more about comprehensive solutions for our times. We expect, therefore, to see continued growth in the managed futures industry as fees decline, correlations among asset classes continue to break down, and the influence of central bank interventions on legitimate price discovery wanes,” said Summit participant Rick Harig, Partner, Efficient Capital Management.

The Alliance is supported by its partner firms, for without their leadership, this gathering would not be possible. The organizations co-hosting this year’s Alliance Partner Summit were: Aristotle Circle, Efficient Capital Management, HUB International Personal Insurance, OppenheimerFunds, Rothstein Kass, Schroders, State Street Global Advisors, Summitas, and TriState Capital.

Alliance Research will release shortly the final report of its 9^th Annual MFO Report which it conducted in 2012. For 2013, the firm will launch its 10^th Annual MFO Study, the 3^rd Annual 2013 External CIO Study, the 2nd Annual Security Study and an Inaugural Alliance Reporting Study. For more, please go to: www.TheAllianceReport.com.

About The Family Wealth Alliance: The Alliance is a connector of firms and families who share its core value, “We Place Families First.” Known as an innovator, the firm chronicles, convenes, and consults. Based in Wheaton, Illinois USA and founded in 2003, the firm is celebrating its 10^th Anniversary with a Black Tie Gala at The James Hotel Chicago on October 16-18. Details about all The Alliance’s research, consulting, and events can be found on the firm’s website: www.FWAlliance.com.