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Families with significant wealth often assume that requiring a prenuptial agreement should be expected, but frequently have questions on the impact the discussion can have on current and future family relationships. Through effective communications and careful development, a prenuptial agreement can enhance and clarify a couple’s financial re...

With the recent changes in the transfer tax laws, it is possible to transfer greater wealth and reduce income taxes through POAST. This innovative approach and integrated trust technique allow a wealthy individual (the donor) to provide benefits to both parents and descendants. A properly structured POAST can accomplish multiple objectives, includi...

While election-year politics will dominate legislative action in 2016, comprehensive tax reform remains a priority for many businesses. President Obama and the Republican leaders of Congress will face key tax policy issues, including tax reform, global tax controversy, IRS challenges, new regulatory projects, and other tax policy matters of importa...

Change is in the wind. After a challenging 2015, the investment landscape for 2016 will be defined by a new course for monetary policy and political leadership, a new primary catalyst for stocks and an altered roadmap for credit markets, and for energy. Looking ahead at these asset classes—U.S. equities, international equities, fixed income, ...

There is nothing particularly magical about the start of a new calendar year, but it is a time to reassess the global economy and markets in search of investment opportunities. At the start of 2016 the outlook shows low recession and bear market risks, the U.S. poised to outperform but an inflection point is nearing. The opponents look equally stro...

Learning and practicing the basics of money management can have a profound impact on a young child’s life. What parents often overlook, even those who are investors themselves, is taking the education to the next stage once their children get older—say, around age 11 or 12. At that point, it may be the right time to start a conversation about inves...

Volatility in global equities subsided in the Fourth Quarter of 2015; however, 2016 will likely see multiple spikes due to the follow-through from low oil prices and concerns over China. Other current and fluctuating conditions of global capital markets add to the volatility. Amidst the turmoil, growth should stabilize in 2016 with the impact of Ch...

For most financial assets 2015 was a challenging environment, with equities seeing negative or muted performance and fixed income facing its worst year since 2013 as yields slowly moved higher in anticipation of the Fed rate hike in December. Some of the macro themes of 2015 (a strong dollar and monetary tightening in the U.S.) will carry forward i...

Important insights lie in the trends hidden under asset class classification of the hedge fund industry, which is expected to grow 25% annually in the next five years from $0.5 to $1.4 trillion dollars. To spot the trends, the asset categories should be useful for family offices to gain meaningful insights of major allocation shifts. A good place t...

Looking back on 2015, it was a disappointing year for investors with returns that were flat to negative, reflecting global market pressures that demand attention in 2016. The new year begins with a tricky liftoff around lowered market expectations and slightly more conservative positioning. Declines in corporate earnings, global growth, oil prices,...

Global equity markets rebounded sharply in October 2015 after the third quarter sell-off due to accommodative monetary policies and some better economic and earnings news. The gains faded late in the quarter on further weak data from China, weak exports, and more stress in the energy and commodity sectors due to oversupply mostly extracted by new t...

The term “passion investments” has gained currency within the wealth management arena to describe high-end collectibles and other luxury possessions that hold emotional as well as financial value for their owners. When considering that this new asset class has generated noticeable returns, it’s no surprise that owners want to protect their high-val...

Successful family offices combine financial, philanthropic, legal, and administrative operations and help ensure that family objectives are achieved from generation to generation. These responsibilities create a range of liability risks for the family office entity and its executive and professional staff. With these risks, it is important for fami...

The digital revolution is reshaping the way people live their lives and the way they work; it’s also forcing a fundamental transformation in talent recruitment and management. Whatever technological innovations are ahead, it’s the people that will make the difference between eventual success and failure. No longer can it be a ‘bus...

Technology companies are spearheading industry-spanning innovations that underpin the Internet of Things (IoT), bigger data analytics and cloud-based “everything as a service.” Ultimately, these platforms will coalesce into a globally interconnected ecosystem of data-driven technologies that will bring entirely new business opportunitie...