Family Offices Look to Next Generation of Investors

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Family Offices Look to Next Generation of Investors

Bloomberg Businessweek
Date: December 3, 2025
Hosts: Carol Massar, Tim Stenovec
Guest: Elizabeth Thiessen, Head of Family Office Solutions, Bank of America Private Bank

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into a new Bank of America study exploring the evolving landscape of family offices—private wealth management firms for ultra-high-net-worth families. The conversation centers on the upcoming massive wealth transfer—estimated at $124 trillion over the next decade—particularly its effect on investing philosophies, intergenerational dynamics, philanthropy, and the increasing influence of women and technology. Elizabeth Thiessen, leading Family Office Solutions at Bank of America Private Bank, breaks down major findings and discusses the challenges, aspirations, and changing face of family offices as they prepare for the next generation of investors.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Scale and Diversity within Family Offices

• Wide Range of Assets Managed:
  • Family offices surveyed by Bank of America ranged from managing $25 million to over $5 billion.
  • Notably, over 60% of those surveyed control more than $500 million in assets.
    • (Elizabeth Thiessen, 03:07)
• Quote:

  “So it really is a wide spectrum of family offices that we spoke to and we'll talk about here today in the results.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 03:07

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2. The Coming ‘Great Family Office Transfer’

• Imminent Wealth Transfer:
  • 87% of families have not yet transitioned main control to the next generation.
  • 60% expect to do so within 10 years; 33% within 5 years.
• Key Impacts Expected:
  • Broader use of technology.
  • Increased focus on philanthropy.
  • Shifting investment styles and priorities.
• Quote:

  “We could call it the great family office transfer... 6 out of 10 expect to transition in the next 10 years, 1 out of 3 in the next 5 years. So it's beginning to unfold.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 03:35

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3. Shifting Investment Approaches: Rising Role for Alternatives

• Alternatives on the Rise:
  • Despite two-thirds describing themselves as 'conservative investors,' allocations are nearly split between marketable securities (36%) and alternatives (34%).
  • Alternatives include private equity, direct company investments, and real estate.
• Forward-Looking Preferences:
  • Private equity seen as the leading area for future returns, followed by direct investments and real estate.
• Quote:

  “What was interesting in the study is 2/3 of the family offices...referred to themselves as conservative investors, but yet their allocation was pretty even between marketable securities and alternatives.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 03:35

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4. Mission, Purpose, and Family Communication

• Mission May Shift with Next Generation:
  • In situations where principal family members are less involved, families expect a 73% likelihood the foundational purpose of the office will change post-transition.
• The Need for Early Conversations:
  • Open, intentional communication with younger generations around family wealth, mission, and expectations is crucial to ensuring continuity.
• Quote:

  “Having those conversations and that intention early is paramount.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 06:07

• Trust Reveals:
  • Some families broker staged, milestone-based disclosures of wealth to heirs, rather than sudden “trust fund reveals.”
  • Intentionality yields better outcomes in preparing heirs for wealth.
• Quote:

  “If there's a really intentional process where that is revealed with milestones and intention, I think that that can have better outcomes ultimately.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 08:02

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5. The Increasing Influence of Women

• Women and Philanthropy:
  • Many women who become major recipients of wealth show a greater focus on philanthropy.
  • 51% of surveyed offices expect philanthropy to increase with next-generation leadership, often tied to women in the family.
• Quote:

  “Many times women in a family are getting involved early in philanthropy and then that can play through.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 08:37

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6. The ‘Hidden Complexity’ of Family Offices

• Beyond Investing:
  • Family offices manage complex operational tasks beyond investment, such as administration, legal compliance, and succession planning.
  • Thiessen refers to this as the “hidden complexity”—an often-underappreciated component of family office work.
• Quote:

  “It’s more than just the investment philosophy that they're executing against, you know, it's all the related operational work that comes with that.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 08:37

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Wealth Transfer:

  “As we know this transfer is beginning to unfold, having like early conversations around, like, what do you want that next generation to do with it?... Having those conversations and that intention early is paramount.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 06:07

• On Philanthropy:

  “...When these family offices transition, 51% expect an increased focus on philanthropy with the next gen.”
  — Elizabeth Thiessen, 08:37

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Important Timestamps

• 01:56 — Host introduction of topic and study findings.
• 02:38 — Elizabeth Thiessen joins and frames the size and diversity of family offices.
• 03:35 — Elizabeth covers primary study findings: upcoming generational transfer and impact on investing/philanthropy.
• 05:46 — Hosts ask about evolving priorities for the next generation — spending vs. stewardship.
• 06:07 — Elizabeth on early communication and safeguarding family mission.
• 07:19 — “Trust reveals” and family communication styles.
• 08:37 — Women’s increasing influence and hidden complexity in family office operations.

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Episode Tone

• Data-driven and forward-looking, yet conversational and accessible.
• Guest and hosts emphasize the importance of planning, intention, and open family dialogue as family offices prepare to navigate an unprecedented wealth transition and shifting investment landscape.

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For listeners seeking insight into the future of private wealth, the impact of generational change, and the evolving role of women and technology in managing fortunes, this episode is a rich and timely resource.

Transcript

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[Bloomberg Radio Host]

You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Massar and Tim Stanvak on Bloomberg Radio.

[Tim Stanvak]

Well, a recent study by bank of America Family Office finds that overall, family offices are optimistic about the outlook of the US Stock market, private equity and merger and acquisition activity, with more than 6 in 10 anticipating that the markets will move higher over the next year. Now, the study covers a lot, everything from AI and alternatives to wealth across generations and wealth transfers of more than $100 trillion, more like 124 trillion over the next decade to heirs and also to women. It's something that we have talked about a lot in our weekly discussion Women, Money and Power, where we look at all the economic implications of the massive wealth transfer that's underway, how it is impacting Tim, the investing, saving and also giving landscapes.

[Carol Massar]

With some thoughts on that, we welcome Elizabeth Thiessen, head of Family Office Solutions at Bank of America Private Bank. It's got some $447 billion in assets under management. She joins us from Charlotte, North Carolina Elizabeth, how are you?

[Elizabeth Thiessen]

I'm great, Tim. Good to be with you both.

[Carol Massar]

It's good to have you with us. I just want to set the scene a little bit, just to contextualize the different families that you work with. What would be like a typical family's net worth and size? Like, what are we talking here for family office clients for bank of America private bank?

[Elizabeth Thiessen]

Well, it ranges. And in this study in particular, we talked to over 335 family offices, and they ranged from 25 million in assets that they're managing to over 5 billion. So it really is a wide spectrum of family offices that we spoke to and we'll talk about here today in the results.

[Carol Massar]

So what did you find that was top of mind for them? What? Acknowledging that, of course, not everybody has the same priorities.

[Elizabeth Thiessen]

Yeah, a few things really stood out to us. You know, this was a very rich set of data that came out of the study. I will highlight that of the clients that we talked to, over 60% of them had greater than 500 million in assets. So to your early your question, but some of the themes that came through, one I'd highlight, you know, you talked about the wealth transfer that's underway, and that really came through in the results as well. It was really underpinned. We could call it the great family office transfer. What's not surprising, 87% of the families we spoke to haven't transitioned yet to the next generation. And that's not surprising. You know, there's really been an increased velocity in formation of family offices. But what they told us was 6 out of 10 expect to transition in the next 10 years, 1 out of 3 in the next 5 years. So it's beginning to unfold. And, you know, as we asked family offices about the implications of that, you know, they're definitely starting to think about a new generation of error in investing, increased focus on philanthropy and a definite increased use of technology. So I think that that wealth transfer that we're seeing holistically across the US Is absolute impacting family offices. And it's starting to happen. The second theme I would highlight is the increased focus on alternatives. What was interesting in the study is 2/3 of the of the family offices we spoke to referred to themselves as conservative investors, but yet their allocation was pretty even between marketable securities and alternatives. 36% marketable securities, 34 alts, but they're leaning into alts. When we asked, know, what do you want? Where do you think you're going to get the greatest return in the future? What's Your area of focus as you look forward. Private equity was number one, followed by direct investments in companies, followed by real estate. So we see that alternatives focus, you know, continuing to take center stage.

[Tim Stanvak]

Elizabeth, can I just jump in for a sec? I am curious, do any of them think about, in terms of the wealth transfer, what it means, like, are they going to also go spending money? Or like, is it all about, you know, ensuring that the wealth exists for future generations? I'm just curious if there's a different take, whether it's women or whether it's a younger generation.

[Elizabeth Thiessen]

Well, it's both. I mean, there's definitely a desire, you know, when we talk to family offices, there's definitely a desire to maintain the mission and purpose of that family office and why it was created to begin with and what came through in the research which we found really interesting. One of the things we asked family offices is how involved is your principal in the management and running of the family office? And they had a scale either, you know, not very, less involved, moderately involved, very involved. And the clients that have family offices that have less involved principals, they expect, 73% of them expect the mission and purpose of the family office to change when handed to the next generation. So to, to us as we read that, it's a real, you know, call to that. As we know this transfer is beginning to unfold. Having like early conversations around, like, what do you want that next generation to do with it? Is it to go spending? Is it to. To continue the purpose that the first generation created? Having those conversations and that intention early is paramount.

[Carol Massar]

I'm sure you caught this story in the Wall Street Journal over the weekend, but it was about these, these so called trust reveals where the super wealthy families are having these, not necessarily parties, but like meetings with financial advisors, maybe family offices to really go through the numbers of, for the next generation. Oftentimes it sounds like some of these families, they grow up knowing they're wealthy, but the kids don't actually know they're getting a $100 million trust fund. What's the communication like? Did that story resonate with you?

[Elizabeth Thiessen]

Yeah, I think. Well, I mean we see both ends of the spectrum. Sometimes you see families where it is, there are, you know, a reveal happens. Others though, I find if there's a really intentional.

Process where that is revealed with milestones and intention, I think that that can have like better outcomes. Ultimately.

[Tim Stanvak]

Yeah, it's, it's super interesting, right? Just what's going on? You know, we've spent a lot of time, Elizabeth, talking about women specifically and the wealth transfer that is expected to be in the hands of women specifically in, you know, I've gone through the report. I'm just curious what you guys are seeing specifically, if you've seen any transfers already to women and how they approach money perhaps differently.

[Elizabeth Thiessen]

Yeah, we absolutely do. There's a lot of the transition that happens for women in family office and I think, you know, their approach. We do regularly see an increased focus on philanthropy that can play through. Many times women in a family are getting involved early in philanthropy and then that can play through. The study did highlight that when these family offices transition, 51% expect an increased focus on philanthropy with the next gen. So we do see that. I think the other part of the study we found really interesting is what we called the hidden complexity of a family office. As you mentioned, Carol, it was broad ranging in terms of the topics that we touched on. But one of the areas that we really wanted to get, you know, more data around is what, you know, we call the hidden complexity. And we really highlighted that, you know, these family offices, it's more than just the investment philosophy that they're executing against, you know, it's all the related operational work that comes with that.

[Tim Stanvak]

Right. Elizabeth, we, Elizabeth, we've got to run. Forgive us, forgive us, but hopefully we can continue this conversation in the future. Elizabeth Eason, head of family Office Solutions at Bank of America Private Bank.

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