A short history of the family office industry

Origins

European banking and merchant families kept private staff to manage their estates and investments long before the term family office existed. In the United States, the office John D. Rockefeller set up in 1882 to manage his family’s affairs is often cited as an early example of the modern single family office.

The rise of multi-family offices

In the 20th century, some single family offices began serving other families as well, and independent firms started offering family office services to several clients. These became known as multi-family offices.

Regulation in the United States

The Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 removed an exemption many private advisers relied on. In 2011 the SEC adopted its family office rule, which excludes offices that serve a single family, and meet the rule’s conditions, from registering as investment advisers. That is one reason single family offices remain hard to research from public filings.

Today

Family offices now operate in every major financial centre. Governments in places such as Singapore, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates have introduced programs to attract them. The practical result for researchers is a market that keeps growing and stays largely private.