The Evolution and Challenges of the Trust Industry

The role of the trustees has evolved rapidly, and there has been a transition in the investment standards guiding trustees from being a “prudent man” using legal lists to being a “prudent investor” employing modern portfolio theory. In addition, trustees are now required to understand concepts of foreign taxation and foreign property law regimes and remain compliant with strict federal Know Your Customer laws put in place to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. These changes and other considerations have spurred the evolution of the trust industry and presented new challenges.