The term "family office" is used loosely in the financial services industry — sometimes to describe a dedicated organisational structure managing billions of pounds, sometimes to describe a small team of advisers serving a wealthy family. Understanding what a genuine family office is, and whether it is appropriate for your circumstances, requires cutting through some of the marketing language.
What a family office is
A family office is a private organisation established to manage the financial and non-financial affairs of a very wealthy family. It is, in essence, a private financial services firm owned by one family (or a small number of families) for their exclusive use.
The defining feature is that the family office works solely for the family — not for external clients, not for shareholders seeking profit, not for a parent financial institution with its own product shelf to sell. The alignment of interests is, in theory, absolute.
Single-family office vs multi-family office
A single-family office (SFO) is established by one family to manage only their affairs. It employs a team of professionals — investment managers, tax advisers, accountants, lawyers, and administrators — all dedicated to a single client.
The costs of running an SFO are substantial. Staff salaries, technology infrastructure, regulatory compliance, office premises, and professional indemnity insurance typically add up to £1–3 million per year at a minimum, and significantly more for complex structures. For this to make economic sense, the assets under management typically need to be at least £30–50 million, and often significantly more. An SFO managing £5 million would be paying more in running costs than the investment returns could sustain.
A multi-family office (MFO) serves multiple wealthy families, sharing the cost of infrastructure and expertise across the client base. Each family benefits from the depth of resource that only a large AUM can support, while the economics are shared.
MFOs vary significantly in character:
- Independent MFOs — established specifically to serve multiple families without a product manufacturing arm or institutional parent
- Bank-affiliated MFOs — private banking arms of major banks, which can resemble an MFO in service model but may have product distribution incentives
- Evolved wealth management firms — independent advisers that have grown to serve a cluster of high-net-worth families at something approaching family office depth
What a family office provides
The breadth of services distinguishes a genuine family office from a standard wealth management firm. A full-service family office typically offers:
Investment management. Asset allocation, manager selection, direct investment decisions, performance reporting, and risk management across all asset classes — public equities, bonds, private equity, real estate, alternatives. Often the investment approach is highly customised: bespoke mandates, co-investments alongside external managers, family-specific benchmarks.
Tax and legal coordination. Multi-jurisdictional tax planning, coordination with external advisers (specialist tax counsel, solicitors, barristers), and ensuring that investment decisions are made in a tax-aware context across all the jurisdictions where family members reside.
Consolidated reporting. One of the most operationally valuable family office functions: aggregating all financial information across banks, brokers, direct holdings, real estate, and alternative investments into a single periodic report. Many families without a family office have no idea what their true consolidated position is at any given moment.
Estate and succession planning. Structuring wills, trusts, and other succession vehicles; coordinating with multiple jurisdictions; managing the long-term transfer of wealth across generations in accordance with the family's intentions.
Family governance. For multi-generational families, helping establish governance frameworks — family councils, family constitutions, investment committees — that allow the family to make collective decisions without destroying relationships.
Bill payment and administration. At the most operational level, some family offices manage household bills, property management, payroll for household staff, insurance renewals, and routine administrative tasks. This is sometimes called the "family CFO" function.
Philanthropy. Charitable giving structures, grant-making, foundation management, and impact investing. For families with philanthropic ambitions, having a dedicated resource to manage this thoughtfully is important.
Minimum wealth thresholds
As noted, a single-family office requires substantial assets to be economically justifiable. Most commentators cite a minimum of $30–50 million in investable assets for an SFO to make sense, with the economic case strengthening significantly above $100 million.
Multi-family offices typically serve clients with investable assets from £5–10 million upwards. Below this level, the service depth of a genuine MFO is rarely available — the economics do not support the staffing.
The unique challenges of international families
For internationally mobile families — those with members living across different countries, assets in multiple jurisdictions, and income from several sources — the complexity of wealth management is substantially greater than for a family concentrated in one location. This complexity is precisely where the family office model has the most to offer, and where the gap between a properly resourced adviser and a general practitioner is widest.
The specific challenges include:
Multi-jurisdictional tax coordination. A family with members resident in the UK, UAE, and Cyprus simultaneously is subject to three different tax systems, double taxation treaties between those systems, and the risk of inadvertently triggering taxable events in one jurisdiction through actions taken in another. Coordinating advice across multiple specialist tax advisers requires a central resource that understands the whole picture.
Currency management. International families often have assets in multiple currencies, costs in multiple currencies, and income in multiple currencies. A family office — or a sophisticated wealth manager — can manage currency exposures at the portfolio level rather than leaving each bank account to sit in whatever currency it happens to be denominated in.
Estate planning across borders. A will valid in the UK may not be recognised as valid in Spain or Cyprus without additional steps. Trusts that are straightforward under English law may be treated as transparent (and taxable) in other jurisdictions. The intersection of different succession laws — particularly forced heirship rules in civil law countries — requires expertise that goes beyond any single jurisdiction.
Reporting and consolidation. A family with properties in three countries, bank accounts in five jurisdictions, and investment portfolios on multiple platforms may have no single view of their wealth. Consolidated reporting — gathering all of this into a coherent picture — is both operationally challenging and genuinely valuable.
What wealth management firms provide below the MFO threshold
For families with investable assets below the MFO threshold — typically £1–10 million — a high-quality independent wealth management firm can provide many of the same functions:
- Consolidated investment management across an individual's entire portfolio
- Multi-jurisdictional awareness for internationally mobile clients
- Coordination with specialist tax and legal advisers
- Long-term financial planning covering retirement, succession, and inter-generational wealth transfer
- Regular strategic reviews and reporting
The difference from a full family office is the depth of resource: a wealth management firm serves many clients, whereas a family office is dedicated to one family. For most high-net-worth individuals below the £30 million threshold, a specialist wealth management firm is both more practical and better value than attempting to replicate an SFO.
Frequently asked questions
At what point does it make sense to set up a family office?
The general guidance is that a single-family office becomes economically justifiable once investable assets exceed £30–50 million. Below that level, the annual running costs of an SFO consume too large a proportion of the return on assets. A well-run MFO or specialist wealth manager typically provides better value and comparable service depth for families with £5–30 million in investable assets.
Can a family office help with non-financial matters like property management?
Yes. Many family offices — particularly those serving ultra-high-net-worth clients — extend their services to "family office" functions beyond pure financial management: arranging travel, managing properties, coordinating household staff, and handling the personal administration that a very busy or very mobile family outsources. This is sometimes called the "concierge" or "lifestyle management" dimension of family office service.
How should an international family choose between advisers in different countries?
The risk with using separate, uncoordinated local advisers in each country is that advice is optimised for each jurisdiction in isolation, potentially creating problems at the interfaces. Ideally, one adviser — whether a family office or a wealth management firm with genuine international reach — coordinates the overall picture and acts as the central reference point, bringing in local specialists where needed rather than leaving the client to connect the dots between multiple separate advisers.
What governance structures do multi-generational families use?
Family governance is a growing discipline. Common structures include: a family council (regular meeting of family members to discuss shared financial decisions), an investment committee (a more formal governance body making investment decisions with documented policies), and a family constitution (a document setting out the family's shared values, decision-making processes, and intentions for future generations). A family office or specialist adviser can help design and facilitate these structures — which are as much about family relationships as finance.
How Global Investments can help
Global Investments has 32 years of experience serving internationally mobile high-net-worth individuals and families — the market typically served by MFOs. Our clients include individuals resident across multiple jurisdictions, families with complex estate planning needs, and international professionals accumulating wealth across currencies and asset classes.
We do not manufacture products or earn commission from fund managers. We work exclusively in our clients' interests across investment management, financial planning, and the coordination of specialist advisers.
Contact us to discuss how Global Investments can serve your family's financial needs, whether through wealth management, investment advisory, or more comprehensive multi-generational planning.
This article is for general information only. It does not constitute personal financial or legal advice. The appropriateness of any wealth management structure depends on individual circumstances. Please seek independent professional advice.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial, legal or tax advice. Rules, prices and regulations change; verify current requirements with a qualified adviser before acting.