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Tax and Jurisdictions

Families, fortunes and fiduciaries in dispute

February 2, 2021

Some beneficiaries discover that faith in fiduciaries can be misplaced. A combination of events, poor decision making, or even malign actors can see the value of fortunes thought to be in safe hands wiped out.

What should a beneficiary in such a position do next? The first step is to obtain information.

Information gathering

What will the Biden tax plan mean for wealthy business families?

January 13, 2021

The 2020 election did not result in the massive blue wave that many predicted, but there are definitely still blue ripples reaching shore—especially now that Democrats won both Senate seats in the Georgia runoff elections.

With the Democrats controlling the White House and now both houses of Congress, there are certainly changes in tax policy and other areas that ultra-wealthy families should expect and watch closely.

What the UK’s Brexit divorce means for wealthy international couples

December 15, 2020

The United Kingdom left the European Union last year and the transitional period which applies EU law to UK divorces expires on 31 December, 2020 at 23:00 GMT. This expiry will have potentially dramatic changes in international family law which will affect every wealthy family with a European connection.

And there will be profound changes in the way that family law operates within Europe after that date.

Should you sell the ancestral family estate?

November 19, 2020

Why would a family who at one time owned up to 50,000 acres sell a house that has been in the family for 40 generations? This is what Will Garton-Jones, owner of the Llanfendigaid Estate in Wales has chosen to do, but it is not a decision that he will have taken lightly.

Inheritance tax planning ideas for family business, property and land owners

October 29, 2020

There are a number of inheritance tax-saving strategies available, but apart from giving away cash, what are ultra-wealthy individuals and families doing to mitigate their exposure to IHT?

Surrey has been labelled Britain’s inheritance tax capital by a national newspaper, the county southwest of London where the average UK inheritance tax (IHT) bill is £234,000 ($303,000).

With property prices in Surrey and across the UK continuing to rise, and the tax-free threshold (known as the ‘nil rate band’) of £325,000 ($421,000) frozen, family business owners could be forgiven for thinking that IHT is a fact of life.

General lifetime planning opportunities

Prudence urged as families transfer wealth ahead of the Biden blue wave

October 28, 2020

Families have accelerated their wealth transfers to their next generation before a possible victory by Democrat challenger Joe Biden in the US presidential election.

Families have accelerated their wealth transfers to their next generation before a possible victory by Democrat challenger Joe Biden in the US presidential election.

However, families should only consider how much and how to give away funds as part of their longer term multigenerational goals and if they could afford it, warned TwinFocus, a Boston and London based multi family office.

Orwellian or All's Well? The UK tax authority’s new powers and family offices

October 7, 2020

HM Revenue & Customs’ powers to obtain information from financial institutions are set to increase, with the requirement for taxpayer or tribunal approval to be removed. Although not yet in force, the legislation is at an advanced stage and will be of interest to family offices.

What the new powers mean

Blockchain reaction: What the technology really means for family business

April 10, 2020

A decade-old, blockchain technology is facing an inflection point. A few years ago it was easy to find people who were evangelically enthusiastic about it. A 2015 World Economic Forum survey of more than 800 executives and experts from the information and communications technology sector found the majority believed that by 2027, 10% of global GDP would be stored on blockchain technology.

Facebook’s Libra launch shows blockchain has entered the mainstream. Jeremy Hazlehurst looks at what the technology really means for family businesses

HMRC's new Family Investment Companies team: How family offices and ultra-wealthy individuals can protect themselves

March 10, 2020

In late February, news broke that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has set up a new team to investigate the use of Family Investment Companies (FICS) with a focus on Inheritance Tax (IHT).

In late February, news broke that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has set up a new team to investigate the use of Family Investment Companies (FICS) with a focus on Inheritance Tax (IHT).

US to UK: Why the Karger brothers of TwinFocus Capital opened their second family office in London

March 9, 2020

Paul and Wesley Karger founded TwinFocus Capital in 2006 to offer global ultra-high net worth professional investors, entrepreneurs and families a unique single family office feel within a multifamily office setting: the “multi-single family office”.

The Boston-based brothers’ firm now advises clients on more than $7.1 billion of assets and manages diversified direct investments in private equity and real estate.