This family has a large and complex balance sheet, and they had the benefit of excellent advisors for many years before bringing us in to lead the team.

We were able to add value in the following ways:

• Wealth management strategy – We worked with the CEO and his family to define a customized and comprehensive wealth management strategy for the family’s assets. We also showed them how to measure their progress and test recommendations.
• Investment strategy and risk management – The family had many investment managers, but no over-arching investment strategy and no investment risk management strategy. Now they have a comprehensive investment strategy and improved net returns from their investments.
• Tax optimization – The family had no system for collecting and analyzing tax information throughout the year. Consequently, tax planning was based on guesswork and was being done too late to be effective. We designed and implemented a comprehensive tax planning system that we now use throughout each year.
• Long-term planning – Based on our recommendations, the family has made many changes to their estate plan to better align the plan with the family’s long term wealth management goals.
• Private investments – The family has made more than 100 private investments in various companies and real estate ventures. Many lacked proper documentation. We created an electronic document library that the family office staff and all of the client’s advisors can access. All documentation is now up-to-date.
• Business agreements – The buy-sell agreements for many of the family’s private investments contained provisions that were no longer suitable. We recommended a completely different approach to deal with this problem, and we managed the implementation of new agreements.
• Family compound – The family vacation compound, which includes very valuable real estate, lacked an adequate long-term financial plan and governance structure. We recommended and implemented a strategy to address these needs.
• Charitable giving – We worked with members of the next generation and the staff of the family’s private foundation to involve the next generation in the foundation and develop their financial skills in the process.
• Family meetings – The family’s key advisors now meet regularly with the family to discuss strategy, and identify opportunities. The Ballentine Partners’ Client Advisor assigned to the family prepares the agendas, chairs the meetings, and manages the family’s team of advisors. Members of the next generation are starting to participate in these meetings as part of their education process.

To learn more about how we can work with you and your family, contact us.