Over 70% of Asian families set to transfer wealth, but only half say next gen is ready for family office: report
Beyond shaping their assets’ future ownership, families need to do as much to develop their future stewards
Around 70% of high-net-worth families in Asia are planning to pass their wealth on to future generations, according to a report by the Wealth Management Institute (WMI). However, only about half of these families believe their next generation is ready to engage with the family office. The institute warns that having a succession plan does not guarantee the next generation is ready to take on stewardship responsibilities.
To bridge this gap, families must invest equally in developing their future stewards as they do in structuring the future ownership of their assets. The report, titled "Stewardship by Design: Preparing Asia’s Next Generation for Leadership and Impact," surveyed 146 family-office principals and professionals across the Asia-Pacific region, with Singapore as the main hub.
WMI found that cross-generational participation in strategic or operational decisions correlates with a 6.5 times higher likelihood of viewing the next generation as prepared. The report suggests four key elements for developing stewards: identity, responsibility, accountability, and legitimacy. Participation in strategic decisions has a stronger association with preparedness than operational or oversight activities.
For families aiming to maintain continuity across generations, they should focus on developing tomorrow's stewards while preserving the meaningful relationships and practices that make development possible.
Written by urgent.news from The Business Times - Companies & Markets's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
