Blue Chip Issue 84

BLUE
CHIP
WEALTH MANAGEMENT
The rise of family offices
in South Africa
South Africa’s wealthy families and individuals face
unique challenges when it comes to managing their
wealth given the country’s prevailing socio-political and
economic pressures. Many high-net-worth individuals
(HNWIs) have family-owned businesses, global assets and multijurisdiction
fiduciary demands, which requires implementing
a more complex structure to manage
Family offices have distinct
advantages for families
who are looking to grow
and preserve their wealth.
their wealth. Given this complexity,
special tax regime (STR) HNWIs are
increasingly looking to the family office
model to protect and manage their
wealth in a more cohesive manner.
The family office service has become
a fast-growing wealth management
segment in South Africa and Africa,
which is hardly surprising given that the AfrAsia Bank Africa
Wealth Report 2021 predicts that total private wealth in Africa
will rise by 30% over the next eight years, reaching $2.6-trillion
by 2030. Research by Knight Frank found that just less than
4 400 individuals will join the league of ultra-high-net-worth
individuals (UHNWIs) in Africa between now and 2026, a growth
rate of 33%, the fastest in the world after Asia.
The family office model offers HNWIs several unique benefits.
Families benefit from a highly qualified, multi-disciplinary team
of advisors who are experts in different fields of finance, both
domestically and offshore, such as asset management and global
tax structuring, estate planning as well as cash
and risk management. They work together
to make key financial recommendations
and create financial solutions to suit the
needs, expectations and goals of their client
families. A family office acts as a firm of trusted
advisors and looks at the big picture to devise
a strategy for managing a family’s wealth in a
comprehensive and integrated way. This also
affords families the convenience of having their affairs integrated
under one roof and managed with the family’s future in mind.
Private Client Holdings is a multi-family office based in Cape
Town that has been managing HNWIs’ wealth for the last 30
years. It provides a hands-on and personalised approach where
48 www.bluechipdigital.co.za