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As of this summer, you have been with Stonehage Fleming for over five years. How has the company evolved during that time?

I joined the businesses in 2012 on the Fleming (FF&P) side to strengthen and transform their Wealth Planning division. In 2015, FF&P merged with Stonehage to become Stonehage Fleming and I became Head of Wealth Planning for the new combined Group. Being part of a wider international family office has many advantages for our clients. Our broad in-house expertise allows us to advise complex clients in a streamlined and efficient way. Our clients have access to numerous specialists, who they can engage with without building relationships from scratch. They have confidence in us to refer them to the best person for the job, whether inside or outside of the firm.

We have grown substantially in the last few years both in clients and staff and our growth has enabled us to recruit some of the best people in the industry. Group assets under administration are now over £60 billion and assets under management is now £15.2 billion.

What is your proudest achievement from those five years?

It is still quite rare to see gender diversity within the wealth planning industry. It makes me particularly proud that my team is almost 50% women across all levels of seniority. I believe that male and female clients often open up to women and do not feel threatened to approach us for advice – a strength that should be recognised and utilised.

What challenges have you faced in your work since 2020, and how have you overcome them?

The past year brought some of the biggest challenges the industry and the team have seen, but it also brought opportunities. The pandemic triggered a need amongst clients to get their affairs in order and galvanised decision-making on wider topics, such as what would happen in the event that they were no longer around to articulate their wishes for their wealth or help guide their loved ones on financial matters. We also saw the next generation of our client families wanting to get more involved and over the past year have worked closely with them to tease out what their priorities are and to ensure they are well prepared for the future. We have also been fortunate enough to have substantial growth within our team during lockdown. The challenge was virtual integration of these new team members, but our strong culture and work ethic paved the way for success.

I believe that male and female clients often open up to women and do not feel threatened to approach us for advice – a strength that should be recognised and utilised.

In your opinion, what could be done to improve gender diversity and equality in leadership roles in finance?

My mission is to lead by example, and I have built a diverse team who are focused on the growth and development of each other as well as themselves. Our business model involves recruiting and retaining the best people, which means nurturing and mentoring the best people from a diverse base in respect of gender, race, religion, ethnicity, education, sexual orientation and socioeconomic background. In order to excel, our people should expect to operate in an inclusive culture which welcomes and supports differences and where all employees are comfortable in being themselves and voicing their views. In 2020 we launched a diversity & inclusion committee to ensure that our objectives are being met; experience has shown us that we can best serve the interest of our existing clients by drawing on the insights, talents and judgements of a diverse workforce.

Community engagement is also very important and in the past year we have supported a number of mentoring programmes including Envision (designed to help disadvantaged young people develop vital life skills for the modern working world) and the 10,000 Black Interns programme (an initiative that aims to help young adults kick start their career and improve diversity in the City of London). These programmes are a crucial training ground for top talent and give firms like Stonehage Fleming the opportunity to demonstrate to young people, early on in their education, that careers in financial services are a good proposition for them. A more diverse internship pool will ultimately translate into greater entry-level diversity too.

About Susie Hillier

I am a partner of our international Family Office and Head of Stonehage Fleming’s Wealth Planning business. We work with aspiring and wealthy clients to develop and implement strategies to protect and manage their wealth. I have over 25 years’ experience as a trusted adviser to a wide client base of entrepreneurs, board director, professional partnerships and private equity professionals, and have built many long-standing relationships – in some instances now advising the third generation of family members.

My team and I work with a huge range of clients. At one end of the spectrum, we look after ‘accumulators’ who are in the first stages of building their wealth. They could be the next generation who will inherit and require education, or entrepreneurs starting out with limited disposable income. At the other, we look after ultra-high net worth individuals, including private equity professionals or owner managers exiting businesses for multiple millions.

We understand that wealth means different things to different people – you can only help someone think about their retirement, inter-generational planning, investments or tax structuring options if you understand the big picture and the purpose of their wealth. We are unusual in adopting this broader, holistic perspective.

Stonehage Fleming is the leading independent Multi Family Office in the EMEA region. Our vision is to be the pre-eminent independent adviser to the world’s leading families and wealth creators. We maintain that there are few firms that can offer our blend of services and our ability to address the complex needs of families spanning generations and geographies, across the entirety of their private and commercial interests.

Sandy Tao Chen serves as Executive Director – Head of Trusts of the First Advisory Group’s Hong Kong branch and its entities. First Advisory Group is a wealth planning group that was founded in Liechtenstein in 1954.

Sandy’s professional career has been split between New York and Hong Kong, having accumulated more than 20 years’ experience in the provision of wealth planning solutions, specializing in asset protection and succession planning.  She is a full member of Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, the NYS Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and is a member of AICPA. Below, Sandy speaks to Finance Monthly about First Advisory Group and trust and wealth planning trends in Hong Kong.

 

Tell us about First Advisory Group and its mission?

First Advisory Group is a leading independent financial services provider with offices in Geneva, Hong Kong, Panama, Singapore, Vaduz and Zurich and has more than 300 experienced employees working around the world to fulfil this commitment. With expertise backed by 62 years’ experience and a diversity of external specialists, the Group offers an independent, one-stop and results focused advisory service for its clients’ wealth management needs.

Furthermore, the Group has formally operated in Hong Kong as a jurisdiction for a number of years, establishing a physical presence in 2010. First Advisory is present and active in all-important financial and business centers worldwide. With its head office in Vaduz, Liechtenstein and further offices in Zurich and Geneva, Switzerland, the Group offers unique locational advantages to its clients, i.e. banking and professional secrecy, highly flexible company law, high legal certainty, high political and economic stability and continuity, highly professional approach to financial services and central location in the heart of Europe.

First Advisory Group offers further attractive locations to its clients in Asia, namely Hong Kong and Singapore, as well as in Central America.

 

How can trusts be set up and structured in Hong Kong?

 

How can trusts provide tax efficient solutions for clients?

 

What other wealth planning structures are available in Hong Kong?

At First Advisory, we offer clients diverse and innovative wealth planning services through a single platform. These include international asset structuring by using trusts, foundation and/or corporate solutions. The Group is positioned to deliver a dynamic and sophisticated service, precisely tailored to client needs.

 

Can trusts be structured in such a way that they can be open to abuse? Which preventative measures can be taken?

Although under the modern trust laws, settlors are given certain powers (i.e. investment power) on the trust, to executive certain investment decisions. The Group’s compliance has taken precautious measures to make sure that we, as a trustee, have the full discretionary power on the trust fund distributions. The investment powers given to the settlors/beneficiaries are only at the limited power of attorney basis. If there is a private company held under the trust structure, one of our Group subsidiaries must act as the director and shareholder of the company. Our compliance department has implemented a strict and powerful system to monitor our clients on an ongoing basis to make sure they are not involved in any legal transactions i.e. money-laundering, drug-tricking, etc.

 

What makes First Advisory’ services unique when compared to your competitors in Hong Kong?

First Advisory Group offers an independent, one-stop advisory service for our clients’ wealth management needs.

The wealth planning solutions that our Hong Kong office offers are flexible and enduring, aiming at smooth transitions of wealth from generation-to-generation. As all the services derive from one single platform, the Group’s offices can guarantee a seamless and effective solution for our clients. We are one of the very few independent trust companies in Hong Kong that can provide both trust and foundation wealth solutions to high-net-worth clients.

 

Contact details:

Telephone:  +852 2537 9478

Facsimile:   +852 2537 9476

Email: sandy.chen@first.li

Michael Hosford is the Founder & CEO of Synergy and its two branches - SynergyPRO & SynergyPhD. Founded in 2001, Synergy Insurance and Investment Advisery Services helps clients build and manage their wealth. SynergyPRO is the company’s branch that serves the MLB, NFL, NBA and entertainers that Michael and his company have been fortunate enough to represent.

In June 2017, with the help of Co-founders Kurt Marozas and Alex Pina, Michael launched and franchised SynergyPhD to serve pension professionals nationally. This branch is helping people who are educators, fire fighters, and police officers properly select their pension options at retirement.

Here Michael speaks to Finance Monthly about the start of his career, the motivation that drives him and his goals for the future.

 

Your upbringing was slightly unusual, however you founded your own company during your senior year at Southwest Texas State
University. How did you manage to achieve this and what was the motivation that was driving you?

I think when you grow up without a father and your mother moves out of state when you are 14 years old, this leaves you with two choices. You can either fold or fight back at your chance for a successful life and take advantage of the American Dream. I chose to fight back!

Early on, I learned a few things about myself – that I did not like feeling embarrassed, or not having nice clothes and having to stand in the free lunch line at school. I wanted more and I knew understanding money would be a good start. I put myself through college by working for four years at Wal-Mart, and then launched Synergy, an independent financial advisory firm, during my senior year at Southwest Texas State University.

I graduated with a BBA in Finance in 2001. In 2002, I was asked to address the advisers at a large financial services firm at their Leaders’ Conference in Hawaii. In 2002, I was also named to American General Life’s prestigious Legion of Honor.

I have spoken all over the nation to clients and advisers and I have qualified for the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), Court of the Table, and Top of the Table on numerous occasions. In addition to helping hundreds of teachers understand and improve their pension plans, I have helped many HNW individuals including NFL and MLB professional athletes, properly structure their wealth distribution plans. I believe that my success comes from treating each client the way I would personally like to be treated and giving them the care and attention they deserve.

 

What attracted you to the financial advisory field?

The ability to help people properly plan their future, protect what they have and take care of their families should death, disability or the need for long-term care arise.

 

What is Synergy’s philosophy?

Our philosophy is protection with steady growth and a complete understanding of the situation, despite what your retirement plan will look like when considering pensions, social security, other assets and net of taxes. I think the reason people are not good at retirement is simple – ‘they have no experience at it and they have never done it before’. To me, it’s important that a future retiree knows where they stand and gets properly educated on insurance and certain annuity products that can provide stabilization and growth when they need the money most. Our philosophy can be described as ‘choose not to lose’.

 

What would you say are the specific challenges of assisting clients with insurance?

I think one of the challenges is the name ‘insurance’ itself and what some people think about it. If I am on a plane and want to take a nap, I just tell the person next to me: “I sell insurance”, and they won’t say a word to me!

In all seriousness, the ‘fee only’ adviser, and certain talk show hosts, have denounced insurance because they simply do not or do not want to understand the leverage, strength and value these products provide. I jokingly say: ’None of my clients wanted those products prior to being educated, but once needed - they love them’.

 

What strategies do you implement to minimize financial burdens in regards to insurance packages?

Our strategy is education - help people understand that life is not based on a 20-year or 100-year ‘average rate of return chart’. Life happens daily and there will be both good and bad news. Both scenarios require the need for money. Don’t tie it all up until you’re 59 or when you lose your job. Be in a position to utilize your assets.

 

Your firm also provides investment advisory services – how are most financial investments structured in Texas?

The investment advisory service allows me to utilize fee-based accounts or charge a fee, should a client simply want an outside option. This allows us to buy low after any market corrections. Given that I am licensed in several other states, I would imagine that Texas is similar to other states and we use the wide range of products available to us.

 

How do you assess levels of risks for investment strategies? How can you accurately assess the level of risk that an individual is prepared to accept?

We have a unique way of planning. We utilize products that have built-in guarantees to provide a steady and somewhat, predictable income distribution plan. Clients either accept or reject this offer. With markets at all-time record highs, I am concerned that people who say they are ‘risky’ could lose and lose badly, while needing the money they’ve invested. I do not want to be a part of that - I have not forgotten 2001 and 2008.

 

In what ways has your company changed in recent years?

In recent years, Synergy has downsized some of the adviser affiliations and we are moving forward with a more focused group. We will focus on the franchise model of bringing people in with a high desire to be an entrepreneur, people that have the income or savings to transition into becoming a franchisee and are excited about the opportunity. We’d like to work with professionals that have a high desire to help people, individuals that have won at life previously and want to help SynergyPhD grow into the #1 recognized firm for helping pension employees properly choose their pension options at retirement.

 

What excites you about the future?

At age 38, married, and the father of four children, I am excited about the future. With 17 years of experience, I feel as excited about this industry as I did at age 21. I am prepared to have 100 franchisee store fronts across the nation within 10 years.

 

Contact details:

Email:  michaelh@synergytx.com

Website: https://www.synergytx.com/

Twitter:  @SynergyPro7

 

Henny Woon Loong is the Chief Trust Officer for Wealth Planning in DBS Private Banking. He has oversight of all existing trust client relationships, as well as trust policies, documentation, pricing, product development and business acceptance. Henny heads the Wealth Planning team in Singapore, which provides personal trust, estate planning and liquidity planning services to clients of DBS Private Banking and DBS Treasures Private Bank. Here he tells Finance Monthly more about it.

 

What more can you tell us about DSB Private Banking – what are the company’s history, mission and values?

DBS Private Bank is a unit of DBS Bank, a leading financial services group in Asia, headquartered and listed in Singapore. The bank's capital position, as well as "AA-" and "Aa1" credit ratings, are among the highest in Asia-Pacific. We’ve been named the Safest Bank in Asia for seven consecutive years by Global Finance.

Our deep knowledge of the region, complemented by an extensive Asian network across 18 markets, and an open architecture platform, allow us to offer innovative Asia-centric solutions and services to meet the needs of our clients, both at a personal and corporate level. Our recent acquisition of Société Générale’s and ANZ’s private banking businesses in Asia, has significantly increased the scale of our wealth management business globally and expanded our suite of products and services to better serve our clients’ needs.

In DBS, we take a holistic approach to private banking. Growing our clients’ wealth is important. But so is protecting that wealth when our clients transfer their wealth to the next generation. This is what we call Wealth Planning.

 

What are the different types of Trusts in Singapore, and how can they be beneficial? What are the best options for protecting assets and wealth from political, social, economic or personal uncertainty? How can tax liabilities in Singapore be planned for and dealt with efficiently to mitigate their impact?

Singapore is a reputable international trust centre. Trust companies here are licensed and supervised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (“MAS”). The judiciary in Singapore is highly respected and the industry is supported by legal, tax, and financial services firms, both home-grown and international. Our trust law, built on well-established English legal principles, was modernised in 2004. In Singapore, discretionary trusts with investment powers reserved to settlors are very common. These trusts may be revocable or irrevocable, depending on the clients’ objectives.

To provide a conducive environment to foster the growth of wealth management, qualifying trusts administered in Singapore are able to utilise a number of tax incentive schemes. Before these schemes sunset on 31st March 2019, MAS will conduct a review to assess their usefulness and relevance.

 

What are the typical challenges that clients approach you with in relation to the management of their finance and trust planning? What challenges are often faced where trusts are concerned?

Trusts are a core element of many wealth plans. Families have used trusts for centuries to preserve their wealth and make long-term financial provisions for their heirs. This basic need for succession planning has not gone away, and indeed may be even more critical in today’s dynamic environment.

5 or 10 years ago, perhaps the single biggest concern for many clients about using trusts was the loss of control. What has changed since is a heightened awareness of tax amongst our clients. As you know, the financial world is today characterised by increasing transparency, encapsulated in the now-familiar alphabet soup of FATCA, CRS and AEOI.

 

What makes DBS Private Banking’s Wealth Planning departments unique?

Wealth planning is more than simply a conversation about trusts. Indeed in some cases, a trust is not necessary or even advisable. It all depends on each client’s circumstances and objectives. To take an example, trusts may not work for some European clients and alternative structures such as insurance may be more appropriate. In DBS, the wealth planners are not the sales force for our trust company; our job is not to sell trusts. We are very clear that our role is to make sure that our clients get the right advice.

So our wealth planners engage our clients on wider issues that may affect intergenerational transfers of wealth. We are working with many clients to set up single family offices, primarily to ensure there is continuing professional management of their investments after their lifetime. We also find an increasing number of clients who want to make charitable and philanthropic objectives as a key family value, maybe even the key family value, that they want to instil in their descendants. Our clients are also keen to address foreign taxes that apply to their overseas investments, as well as family members who move outside their home country. At the end of the day, every client has different needs and objectives.

Website: https://www.dbs.com

Email: hennyliow@dbs.com

 

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