Credit Suisse sets up family office services unit for Greater China's rich

[HONG KONG] Credit Suisse Group has established a unit focusing on so-called family office services in Greater China, as demand continues to surge among rich Asians wanting to set up private investment vehicles and plan for business succession.

The Swiss private bank has appointed Tan Mae Shen, senior specialist for family office services in Asia Pacific, to provide coverage for clients in Greater China, which includes Hong Kong, Credit Suisse said in a statement on Friday.

Ms Tan, who will be based in Hong Kong as head of the wealth planning services unit, joined Credit Suisse in 2017 and previously worked with business families across Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, China and the Middle East.

As rich Asians target greater investment diversification and as business owners hand over to successors, family offices are sprouting up in regional financial hubs of Singapore and Hong Kong.

They offer a one-stop solution to managing the wealth of the rich, including investments, charitable giving, taxation and wealth transfer.

Asian family offices are evolving from being just investment-focused to offering a platform for dispute resolution and succession planning, as a new generation of family-owned businesses expand into newer areas.

Asia Pacific had 814 billionaires at the end of 2017, accounting for 38 per cent of the global billionaire population, with China minting two new billionaires every week, a report by UBS and PwC showed last year.

As wealth in Greater China continues to grow, the number of clients seeking family office services has increased significantly in recent years, Credit Suisse's head of private banking for North Asia Francois Monnet said in the statement.

REUTERS