Family office
An organisation that runs a wealthy family's affairs: investments, tax, estate planning and administration. A single family office serves one family at high cost; a multi-family office shares the cost across several.
Where you will meet it
Family office appears in 3 learning outcomes on the CFA syllabus. A few of them:
- Explain how firms serving private clients are organised to make money and how they tailor their offer to different client segments
“Providers include private banks, brokerage networks, independent advisers, multi-family and single family offices, and digital platforms.”
- Explain what sets ultra-high-net-worth clients apart from other private wealth clients
“Ultra-high-net-worth families often hold operating businesses, concentrated or illiquid positions, real estate and private investments across several jurisdictions and legal entities, and they may run a single family office or use a multi-family office.”
- Propose how a family should create, put into practice, observe and revise a shared long-term structure for making decisions together
“A family governance framework usually rests on a family charter or constitution setting out values, mission and rules, with bodies such as a family assembly, a family council, an investment committee and, where warranted, a family office.”
Practise it
Practise family office until it is automatic: questions that explain every wrong option.
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