Talent Hunt Intensifies As Singapore Family Offices Top 1,100 | With Commentary From Acre’s Paddy Balfour - Seite 2

That sentiment is shared by other experts: "We are educating and holding hands of lots of families as they embark on the journey of sustainable and impact investments," said Manish Tibrewal, co-founder of multi-family office Farro Capital.

Tibrewal told AsianInvestor earlier that the industry also lacks people who understand how to align the overall mission and vision of a family office to the family values, as well as design and implement family governance, philanthropy and similar non-finance aspects.

MORE TO COME

The search for talent is not unique to Singapore and is part of a broader issue for the financial services industry in many markets,

Government restrictions on immigration after the COVID-19 outbreak in Singapore and around the world, while justified, have complicated the hiring of talent, said Lighthouse Canton's Tandon.

For families looking to set up a family office in an international jurisdiction, the motivation is often to diversify beyond their home bias and become tax efficient.

"In Asia, much of the wealth has been built up in the last two generations and families still tend to retain the original businesses from which the wealth was created," said Mohit Ralhan, global CEO and managing partner at TIW Capital Group.

"In the US and to an even greater extent in Europe, wealth has been accumulated over several generations, and the family businesses were sold a long time ago, or otherwise converted into financial assets."

As more liquidation events take place to remove concentration risk, more family offices will be set up in the region, he said.

"So, creating and expanding family offices in Asia is just in its first phase.

Over the last 10 years, assets under management (AUM) in Singapore has grown more than three-fold in Singapore. Of this incremental AUM two- thirds have come from abroad. The trend will likely continue as more wealthy families especially China and India set up offices in Singapore."

Even additional requirements to encourage more local hiring and investing is unlikely to dent Singapore's appeal.

DIFFERENT FAMILIES, DIFFERENT OFFICES

Single family offices that applied and received tax incentives in Singapore employed about 1,400 locals and permanent residents at the end of June 2022, senior government minister Tharman Shanmugharatnam said in early July.

At least two-thirds of them earned more than S$5,000 ($3,791) per month.

There are certain characteristics that most family offices share, although there is no one-size-fits-all model.