Wealth is not just capital.
It is continuity.

The transition of family assets is a moment of profound vulnerability. It demands more than spreadsheets; it requires a philosophy of permanence. PRIVALOR approaches succession not as a transaction, but as the architectural design of a family’s future influence.

Explore Service Capabilities Schedule a Confidential Review

Structural blueprints representing family architecture

Architectural Pillars of Succession

Effective structuring requires moving beyond standard templates. We engineer three distinct layers of protection to ensure your capital retains its strategic utility for the next generation.

1

Asset Isolation & Title Transfer

Legal segregation of assets to minimize exposure and facilitate clear inheritance lines. We ensure that operational business risks never threaten the core family treasury.
2

Governance & Voting Rights

Establishing family charters and voting structures that prevent deadlock. Capital is kept mobile, but decision-making remains disciplined.
3

Tax-Efficient Liquidity Planning

Ensuring that the tax burden of inheritance does not force the liquidation of strategic holdings or family businesses.

Key Terminology

Stiftungsbetreuung Foundation stewardship. The professional administration of a family foundation, ensuring compliance and mission alignment.

Usufruct The legal right to use and derive profit from property that belongs to another. Essential for preserving ownership while distributing income.

Trust Protector An oversight role that has the power to amend trust terms or replace trustees, ensuring the trust adapts to future legal changes.

Dynasty Trust A trust designed to last for multiple generations, bypassing the rule against perpetuities in suitable jurisdictions.

The PRIVALOR
Signature.

Track record of continuity. We do not theorize about continuity; we engineer it. Here is what that looks like in practice.

The 2019 Reorganization

Migrated a €40m industrial holding into a cross-border trust structure (Liechtenstein/Luxembourg) without triggering capital gains tax or disrupting operations.

Family Constitution

Drafted a binding charter for a third-generation family office, resolving a decade of dispute regarding dividend policy and succession criteria.

Foundation Setup

Established a charitable foundation structure in Germany that allows for tax-deductible contributions while retaining voting control over the underlying assets.

"The mandate was simple: ensure the capital survives the third generation. The structure we built will last the fifth."

— Senior Partner, Estate Planning

From Complexity to Clarity: The Roadmap

Structuring is a process, not a product. We guide our clients through a phased engagement designed to de-risk the transition.

Phase 01

Asset & Liability Mapping

We begin by creating a high-fidelity map of your entire financial universe. This includes public securities, private equity, real estate, and intangible assets. Crucially, we also map liabilities and potential future claims. We cannot protect what we haven't fully visualized. This phase usually takes 2–3 weeks and requires full transparency from all family principals.

Required Inputs

Deeds, shareholder agreements, trust documents, recent tax returns (3 years).

Phase 02

Jurisdictional Arbitrage & Selection

Based on asset type and beneficiary residency, we analyze the optimal legal domiciles. This is rarely a single jurisdiction. We often leverage a "hub and spoke" model where a central holding company (often in Luxembourg or Liechtenstein) owns subsidiaries in operating jurisdictions. We weigh factors such as treaty networks, regulatory rigidity, and political stability.

Key Metric

Effective Tax Rate (ETR) reduction analysis vs. administrative cost overhead.

Phase 03

Execution & Custody Integration

Legal drafting is handled by our network of specialized counsel. Once entities are established, we integrate them with banking partners for custody. This is where PRIVALOR takes over the fiduciary role. We ensure that the new structure is not a "shell" but an active, compliant entity with proper accounting and reporting lines.

Begin the Assessment

The Pragmatic View: Trade-offs

No structure is perfect. Every decision involves a compromise. Here is our honest assessment of the tensions you will face.

Complexity vs. Flexibility

A multi-jurisdictional structure provides excellent asset protection and tax efficiency.

DOWNSIDE: Reduced agility to pivot investments quickly.

Mitigation: We draft specific "powers of appointment" into the deed, allowing for rapid asset class changes without legal restructuring.

Privacy vs. Transparency

Total privacy shields the family from unwanted attention and solicitation.

DOWNSIDE: Can hinder banking relationships due to KYC/AML friction.

Mitigation: We utilize "Tier 1" global banks that accept holding company structures with a "Beneficial Owner" certificate, balancing privacy with regulatory compliance.

Cost vs. Value

Proper stewardship (legal, accounting, trustee fees) is a recurring operational cost.

DOWNSIDE: Eats into nominal returns, especially in flat markets.

Mitigation: We treat these costs as insurance premiums. We also consolidate service providers to negotiate volume discounts that pass back to the family treasury.

Is your family structure ready for the next century?

Good intentions are not enough. You need a fortress. PRIVALOR AG combines the rigidity of Swiss institutional standards with the flexibility required by modern families.

PRIVALOR AG Institutional Grade

Wealth is not just capital.It is continuity.