Why start a family office? For about two-thirds of family offices (67%), it’s to facilitate the administration of family wealth. Wealth preservation and risk-adjusted growth are also common goals, cited by 62% and 60% of family offices, respectively. Philanthropic initiatives are less commonly cited as a reason for starting a family office, though 29% of family offices globally did so.
These global numbers come from The 2023 Global Family Office Compensation Benchmark Report from KPMG Private Enterprise and Agreus, a resourcing and recruiting firm that works with family offices.
There is some regional variation: Administration of family wealth was the most commonly cited purpose in Europe (69%), the UK (73%) and the Americas (70%). It was also the most cited purpose by U.S. family offices – but only 29% said that was their office’s purpose. In Australia and the Middle East, risk-adjusted growth was the most frequently named purpose of a family office.
