Over the past few years, there has certainly been no shortage of research into family offices, as it seems that just about every large financial institution and advisory firm has published reports, surveys and analyses of the growing space. These have been no doubt useful for anybody who wishes to better understand the family office ecosystem. But in the Canadian context, they might also be somewhat limited in their applicability, since they are generally conducted either globally or on the basis of large regional markets. Typically, such studies offer very little Canada-specific information.
Our first multi-family office survey, titled “The Multi-Family Office Landscape in Canada,” is an attempt to narrow that gap. Conducted in the middle of last year, it captures the views of representatives from more than 50 multi-family offices on a wide range of questions, from firm characteristics (staff counts, assets under management, etc.) and portfolio allocations to their most pressing challenges and concerns.
A few highlights:
- A quarter of MFOs surveyed have been in operation for five years or less, but a majority have been operating for 10 years or more.
- Multi-family offices are bullish on private capital opportunities, with nearly 85% recommending private equity and about 60% recommending private credit to their clients.
- Three-quarters of firms surveyed don’t have any cryptocurrency exposures in client portfolios, and a third have no exposures to ESG/sustainability-themed assets.
- The top concern for MFOs: Canadian tax rates, closely followed by the potential for recession and geopolitical unrest.
Previously available exclusively to Canadian Family Offices newsletter subscribers, the survey has now been released to the general public. You can download the report here. (Our newsletter is still well worth subscribing to, however, so please feel free to sign up here.)
“The Multi-Family Office Landscape in Canada” is the first in what we plan to be a series of surveys and reports throughout the year, as we work to more fully explore issues of importance to the Canadian family office ecosystem today.
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