In 1882, ten years before John D. Rockefeller founded the University of Chicago, he established what is considered the first full-service single-family office in the United States. A single-family office is dedicated to managing the wealth and affairs of affluent families, handling everything from investments and financial planning to taxes, estate management, and personalised services.
Rockefeller, alongside his trusted advisor Frederick T. Gates, avoided the high-cost firms of the day, choosing instead to build his own wealth management structure. This innovative setup included professional and administrative staff to meet his family’s unique financial needs.
Inspired by Rockefeller, other affluent families soon followed, establishing their own family offices to manage finances, investments, and philanthropic efforts. Today, the wealthiest individuals—people like Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and Mark Zuckerberg—continue to rely on family offices to oversee their wealth.
We’re now approaching one of the largest wealth transfers in history, with millennials set to inherit up to $90 trillion by 2044 from baby boomers and the Silent Generation. This means that the family office model will likely remain a key structure for wealthy families in the years to come.
But here’s the great news: you don’t need to be a billionaire to take advantage of the family office concept.
Every family deserves access to professional services that act in their best interest—unbiased and dedicated to growing and protecting their wealth. With advancements in technology, including AI, the benefits of a family office can now be tailored to families at various levels of net worth. This allows you to selectively choose the services you need, no matter your wealth level.
If your net worth exceeds £1 million and you’re interested in exploring how the family office model can help grow and preserve your wealth, we’d love to hear from you.