European Family Office Market Poised for Growth – Report

Nick Parmee

23 July 2008

The family office market is still under-represented in Europe, with an average penetration rate of 18 per cent of ultra-high net worth individuals. However, it is poised for rapid expansion owing to a high concentration of wealth in the region as well as a significantly underserved UHNW population, according to a new study.

In The European Family Office Market: Where Is the Opportunity? US financial services IT consultancy Celent outlines the structure of the family offices market and the services it provides and explores the role of technology. It also examines the family office markets in Austria, Benelux, Germany, Spain, and Switzerland.

Celent divides family offices into three main categories: single family offices, multi-family offices and family office service providers. With a total of 1,920 multi-family offices in Europe, or 45 per cent of the family office market, MFOs represent the strongest growth among the different types of family offices in Europe.

"The European market is less mature than the US and is still very differentiated," said Isabella Fonseca, Celent senior analyst and co-author of the report.

Of the markets evaluated, Switzerland is seen as the most developed and still showing high potential; it has the highest presence of independent MFOs, and many of its single family offices are rapidly evolving towards the multi-family office model.

This report is intended as a guide for firms interested in targeting high net worth individuals with family office services. It highlights current family office models and their success factors, as well as major threats and challenges.