Trusts, companies & alternative
cost-efficient
, private structures

Different strategies and various types of entity (trusts, companies, partnerships, foundations, private funds, life insurance, captive insurance companies, charitable entities, private pension plans etc.), spread across different jurisdictions, can be used very effectively to structure and protect our clients’ families and business assets.

The design & implementation of a structure needs to be carefully crafted and coordinated, to include the best and most stable jurisdictions, the right degree of family control, the minimization of tax, reporting and other exposures and the maximization of security and confidentiality for all cross-border holdings and transactions.

Trusts, foundations & succession planning BERNINA PRIVATE WEALTH AG
Trusts, foundations & succession planning BERNINA PRIVATE WEALTH AG

100+

3+

Years of experience

Happy clients

Trusts, foundations & succession planning

There are many types of trust and foundations – ranging across a variety of categories and functions, including for example “irrevocable”, “revocable”, “life interest”, “testamentary”, “reserved powers”, “purpose trusts”, etc., the choice and specific drafting of which will depend on the wishes of the settlors / founders, and on the specific circumstances and jurisdictions of the investments and holdings, as well as the status of the beneficiaries. The privacy, tax and asset protection benefits of trusts and foundation structures – which can involve independent sources of family influence, such as a family council, protectors, enforcers, asset managers & advisors, etc. – are clearly demonstrated by the long history of case law in which the Concorde Group has profound experience of across many key jurisdictions.

Trusts, foundations & succession planning BERNINA PRIVATE WEALTH AG
Trusts, foundations & succession planning BERNINA PRIVATE WEALTH AG

Family offices private trust companies (‘PTCs’) – purpose trusts – private & philanthropic foundations

Family holdings can also be organized and managed in autonomous structures owned or controlled by family members – which can become profit centres in their own right – and are able to command excellent quasi-institutional status with banks and financial institutions, thereby benefitting from the lower transaction costs.

Lémanique Gestion SA www.lemanique-gestion.com
Lémanique Gestion SA www.lemanique-gestion.com

Setting up a single or multi-family office, depending on the size and activities of a family’s assets & related businesses, can be an efficient way of managing holdings of significant size and complexity. Similarly, a Private Trust Company (PTC), in a carefully selected jurisdiction (which may include Switzerland where PTC’s are exempt from direct regulatory supervision), combined with a Purpose Trust (or similar via a foundation), may be the ideal structure to ensure long-term succession or philanthropic planning, with minimal reporting and exempt of wealth & gift taxes. Purpose trusts and tax-exempt philanthropic entities, such as charitable foundations, also provide opportunities for a family to enhance their influence and prestige and provide a solid bases for the beneficial stewardship of their wealth across generations. In all cases, privacy, tax efficiency, management controls and risk minimization are uppermost in the services we offer.