Basics
What is a family office?
Updated: · Leutrim Miftaraj, FLIORE · Editorial standards · Deutsche Fassung
Short answer
A family office is an organisation that manages the wealth and related affairs of a wealthy family as a whole. It coordinates banks, advisers and structures, produces a consolidated view of the family's assets, takes care of tax, legal, compliance and succession matters and acts solely in the family's interest. A single family office serves one family, a multi family office several.
Where the term comes from
Family offices have existed since the nineteenth century, when entrepreneurial families set up their own administrations for their wealth. Today the term describes a professional organisation that holds a family's wealth together across banks, countries and generations.
Unlike a bank, a family office does not sell its own products. It represents the family towards providers – banks, asset managers, insurers, advisers – selects them, monitors them and compares their work. That independence is the core of its value.
Typical tasks
- Consolidated wealth overview and reporting across all banks and structures.
- Selecting and monitoring banks and asset managers.
- Administering companies, foundations, trusts and real estate.
- Coordinating tax and legal advice, compliance and register filings.
- Succession planning, governance and involving the next generation.
- Depending on the family, also philanthropy, insurance and personal services.
Single, multi or hybrid
A single family office works exclusively for one family and offers maximum control and confidentiality. A multi family office shares its infrastructure across several families and is usually supervised. Many families combine a small in-house team with external specialists; lean models are known as virtual or embedded family offices.
Which form fits depends less on the size of the wealth than on the complexity of the structures, the number of family members and generations involved and the degree of control the family wants.
What a family office is not
A family office is not a bank, not an asset manager tied to its own products and not simply a tax adviser. It may perform some of these functions or buy them in, but its role is to see the whole picture and to act for the family. That is why it needs an overview that no single bank statement can provide.
In FLIORE
FLIORE is software for running a family office day to day: mandates as persons, companies, foundations and trusts, consolidated wealth with look-through across structures, beneficial owners, compliance, documents and reporting in one place.
At a glance
| Purpose | Holistic management of a family's wealth and affairs |
|---|---|
| Forms | Single family office, multi family office, hybrid models |
| Key feature | Acts solely in the family's interest, sells no own products |
Frequently asked questions
Is a family office a bank?
No. A family office manages and coordinates a family's wealth but does not sell its own banking products. It works with banks and monitors them on the family's behalf.
Does a family office need a licence?
In Switzerland, Germany and Austria a single family office usually needs no licence as long as it serves only its own family. Multi family offices are usually supervised. The specific activities decide, so the classification should be checked.
What software does a family office use?
Specialised family office software for structures, wealth, documents and compliance, complemented by bank and accounting systems.
How large must wealth be for a family office?
There is no fixed threshold. Complexity, the number of structures and the wish for independence from banks matter more than a single figure. Many families start with a lean team and external partners.
Sources
- OECD – Tax transparency and wealth structures
- FINMA – Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority
- STEP – Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners
This page provides orientation and does not replace legal or tax advice. The cited legal sources in their applicable version are authoritative.
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