The Single Family Office Conference: Leading to Growth & Sustainability

Every client at BNP Paribas Wealth Management is important and some clients represent a complexity that merits expertise that goes far beyond traditional banking.  

Enter the “Family Office”—a set-up many UHNW Clients have put into place in-house and privately, giving them permanent and dedicated access to individuals whose sole purpose is to manage one family’s wealth.  It’s almost like a family has their own team of bankers, just working directly for the family members!

BNP Paribas Wealth management has been sponsoring the Single Family Office conference for several years now, holding core sessions in Paris and more local sessions in relevant sites. On 2 and 3 June, we held the 2022 edition that welcomed participants from leading family offices worldwide.

The difference with these SFO clients is easy to understand: they’re a professional team working for the wealthy, so they have investment and wealth management knowledge often rivalling our own.  So how does one show these experts the benefit of working alongside the BNP Paribas Group? Access to ideas and know-how…

The SFO conference kicked-off with a panel of three of the Group’s Chief Investment Officers, addressing topical subjects and their impact on both markets and investment. A particular focus was on the economics of inflation, both what causes it and how it can be exacerbated given geopolitics. Our CIOs not only dissected the situation, but they also provided options for the SFO participants regarding where to orient their wealth, both for safety and for growth.

Want to follow our WM Chief Investment Officer, Edmund Shing?  Check out his weekly podcast, a new one every Wednesday, via the following link: Podcasts

Stay updated on the global and Asian markets with our WM Asia CIO Prashant Bhayani- Weekly Podcast on Global Markets and Investing

A fascinating focus came next on one of the key world markets, China. With BNP Paribas and external experts, the panel discussed both the business and investment environment—clarifying with insiders’ views both the politics and the economics driving change.  Of great interest to the participants was the ‘what happens next’—recommendations regarding where far-east investments can be oriented given the structural particularities of investing in China.

The afternoon offered a choice to the SFO participants amongst 4 topics: Energy Transition, Real Estate (and ESG standards), a deep-dive into Inflation, and a focus on equity market investment given uncertainties.  These interactive sessions gave the participants an opportunity to discuss in small groups—both with our BNP Paribas experts and with their SFO peers—the common issues they face when managing significant family wealth.

Perhaps nowhere else was ‘access to experts’ more evident than a special session with the BNP Paribas Group Chairman Jean Lemierre. The talk was followed by a rich discussion between the Chairman and the participants, who asked him specific questions pertinent to their individual family’s wealth situation.

After this complete review of markets, with an insider’s view of recommendations… the SFO participants took an altogether different view, a virtual one.

Friday, 3 June saw the SFO attendees strap on visors and grabbing handsets as they immersed themselves in the Metaverse.  The morning programme combined a comprehensive discussion of what the Metaverse is, how to prepare for it, and what benefit it will bring to companies and to individuals. Then the participants experienced the Metaverse live with a series of demos, using the visors and handsets mentioned earlier… this immersive experience was supplemented with practical examples and demos of how the Metaverse goes far beyond avatars and a virtual, Matrix-style world… it is indeed poised to revolutionise how we interact with others and how simple tasks like training and maintenance can be done virtually.