HNW and UHNW Strategies and Solutions Have Transformed Significantly, with Multiple Growth Opportunities Ahead for Savvy Wealth Managers
To My Fellow WSR Community Members:
Being rich ain’t what it used to be.
The last two decades of heady economic growth across industries from tech to hedge funds has swelled the ranks of newly wealthy households across the country. The aging of the Boomer population has accelerated the transfer of assets to younger generations of families who come from long-established wealth.
And massive shifts in technology, the regulatory landscape and consumer behaviors and values are redefining how people think about their wealth – and how that wealth should be safeguarded and managed.
All of which amounts to seismic changes across the high net worth (HNW) and ultra-high net worth (UHNW) client segments – Defined by WSR as, respectively, households with net investable assets of $7 million to $25 million, and households with minimum net investable assets of $25 to $30 million and above.
Gone are the days when financial advice for HNW and UHNW clients was dispensed exclusively by pinstriped suit-wearing private bankers, ensconced in high-backed leather chairs and mahogany-paneled offices.
Yes, there are traditional players who remain highly competitive in serving the most monied households in the country.
But there’s also been a surge of new entrants to this segment, and to help our readers understand how growth opportunities – and hurdles – are being transformed the in HNW and UHNW wealth management space, we’re pleased to bring you this jumbo-sized special issue, which includes:
- How UHNW wealth managers can accelerate growth with new office launches built around very specific individuals. This article in our Upmarket section by Janeesa Hollingshead, Senior Editor, was especially important to me, as it relates to two good friends of mine who have been in the private client segment of wealth management for years: It’s about how Jon Foster, CEO of LA-based Angeles Wealth Management partnered with Harry Grand, Senior Managing Director at Angeles, to successfully launch the firm’s NYC office in 2019 – A move that has accelerated their firm’s growth.
- Planning and executing a successful generational leadership change at a long-established HNW wealth management firm. In our latest On The Rise section by James Miller, we spotlight how thirty-somethings Max Winthrop and Lucas Winthrop assumed the leadership of Boston-based Winthrop Wealth in 2017, as part of a careful and deliberate next gen leadership transition plan. Today, the firm has grown to over $1.5 billion in assets and is going strong. There are plenty of lessons HNW wealth managers can draw on based on the Winthrops’ experiences on how to best approach long range leadership planning.
- The “Underserved Ultra-High Net Worth (U-UHNW)” – How to identify and capture dissatisfied wealthy clients. Also in our Upmarket section and written by James Miller: Russ Norwood, Founder and CEO of Austin, TX-based Venturi Private Wealth walked away from a lucrative career as a senior wealth manager with Merrill Lynch to launch his own UHNW-focused RIA. By identifying and capturing Venturi calls “the underserved UHNW client,” the firm has grown from $500 million in assets after their first year of operations 6 years ago to well over $2 billion in assets today, with a team of 30 professionals.
- The must-have wealthtech solutions for the modern family office and HNW / UHNW-focused RIA firm. Andy Aziz of Toronto, Canada-based wealthtech solutions provider d1g1t, Inc. shares his thoughts on the indispensable tech strategies and solutions that family offices and HNW / UHNW wealth managers need to compete effectively when it comes to serving the sophisticated needs of this client segment on a scalable basis.
- How HNW and UHNW-focused independent wealth managers and family offices can keep ahead of rapidly-changing regulatory and compliance trends. While capturing revenue growth opportunities is important, it’s also crucial for family offices and independent wealth management firms focused on the HNW / UHNW client demographic to have in place the resources and solutions to navigate an increasingly complex regulatory and compliance environment – And to do so on a scalable basis. Mitch Avnet, Managing Partner of Compliance Risk Concepts, shares many helpful insights on this topic.
- Estate planning lessons for financial advisors from the Bill and Melinda Gates divorce. Bill and Melinda Gates’ marriage might be over, but the estate planning lessons that financial advisors can take from the acrimonious destruction of their relationship should remain evergreen – As Josh Strange, President of Good Life Financial Advisors of NOVA outlines clearly.
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Thank you for your continued support!
Cheers!
Larry Roth, CEO
Wealth Solutions Report
