Barely a week goes by without a new study showing the growth of wealth in Asia, and how the region is creating it faster than any other in the world.
One of the latest, by consultancy Capgemini and RBC Wealth Management, the Canadian bank, says that since 2007 the population with $1m in easily investable assets in Asia has grown by 31 per cent, with their combined wealth expanding by 27 per cent. That is well in excess of increases of 14 per cent and 9 per cent respectively for the rest of the world.
Although so much investable wealth exists in the region, the family office remains in its infancy. Campden Wealth, a research company, estimates that between 100 and 120 single family offices operate in Asia, with 75 per cent of them in Hong Kong and Singapore. That compares with an estimated 2,000 such companies in Europe and North America.