Despite the dampening of an emotional high once felt by those relieved to finally be free from lockdowns, travel bans and other government restrictions, the findings this year are not a story of bleak times. In fact, to date, family offices have been emerging from this period stronger, wiser and wealthier than before. This is because family offices, with their long-term approach, patient capital and nimble structures, are exceptionally well-poised to not only ride out, but to capitalize on, economic downturns.

The wealth technology sector is reaching a key point of maturity. Equity funding to wealth tech startups hit a new record of $18.9B in 2021, nearly tripling that of 2020. That funding is now being put to use in tech-driven marketplaces, artificial intelligence, and blockchain, driving innovation in areas like capital markets and asset management that are burdened with inefficient legacy systems.

Across the global UHNW population as a whole, there has been a steady upward trend over the past five years in the share of individuals who have created their own wealth (the “self-made”). This reflects a range of factors, such as the flood of central bank liquidity into global capital markets; expanded opportunities for private enterprise in many emerging markets; new channels of wealth creation from accelerated digital adoption; and evolving societal trends shaped by the pandemic. This recent expansion of self-made wealth has been a feature across the ultra wealthy population as a whole, set against a modest decline in the proportion of solely inherited fortunes.

Sports are tailor-made for the current economic environment. We are experiencing one of the most challenging investment environments of the last several decades, for the vast majority of asset classes. Stocks are in a bear market and bonds are absolutely getting killed, leaving traditional investors with few places to hide. Traditional 60/40 portfolios have had their worst performance in over 50 years. We also have stubborn inflation issues, forcing central banks to downshift global economies and reduce growth. With that as the landscape, professional sports stand out as an attractive asset class based on both predictable, recurring revenues and attractive inflation protection characteristics. Sports league revenue growth has historically remained positive through difficult economic periods, based largely on the long-term contracts in place for national & local media rights, ticketing & premium seating, and sponsorship agreements.

“…We see a growing appetite among HNI and ultra HNI clients for private equity investments in India and the demand increasing from HNI/UHNI investors to allocate part of their assets to this asset class. India is a large and high-growth economy. This is resulting in a dramatic increase in wealth across the spectrum. However, access to good-quality financial advice for families is still difficult. The needs of HNI/UHNI families are also getting complex, and they are looking for a stable, global partner for investment solutions, wealth planning, succession or philanthropy…”

Billionaires are outnumbered nearly 10-to-1 by a fast-growing group of ultra-high-net-worth movers boasting $100 million or more in assets. Growing class of super-rich tech titans, financiers, multinational CEOs and heirs are not only traversing the globe to ski and fly-fish, but also to establish residency or citizenship in multiple countries. Centi-millionaires are the new global citizens — and multinational living is now key to their wealth management strategies. And keep in mind the shift in influence and control over the largest share of U.S. personal wealth — $84 trillion is expected to pass primarily from the baby boomers to Gen X and millennials through 2045. That could have significant implications for families, wealth managers, charitable organizations and financial markets.

“…Today in many ways, high net worth individuals (HNWI) walked right into the 2022 stock and bond market meltdown. Few made adjustments ahead of the 2022 bear market in the S&P 500. Investors now have lost nearly $12 trillion just this year and just from stocks, says Wilshire Associates. No other asset classes are helping much, either, other than cash. The whole situation doesn’t look good. So, according to the World Wealth Report, HNWIs demonstrated measurable interest in emerging asset classes – especially ESG and digital – and vocalized their desire for better digital and personalized offerings from WM firms…”

Something has to be done with digital assets (cryptocurrencies, ETFs, NFTS, metaverse-related products, and digital currencies) and the regulators are rolling their sleeves.

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Last month we had a chance to listen to the speakers of Bloomberg Asia Wealth Summit devoted to the changing nature and evolution of wealth in Asia and the opportunities it brings. Impressive line of experts and what is even more impressive is that they were very concrete with their insights, very specific and straight to the point. We’ve picked up the best of what we’ve heard.