Family offices are a relatively newer term and refer to the private wealth management advisory firms whose clients are ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) investors. They offer all financial and investment services under one roof – be it budgeting, lifestyle management, insurance, tax services, charity and more. These offices could be either single-family offices (serving just one UHNW) or multi-family offices (serving more than one client). Multi-family offices are more popular because of economies of scale. Here is a list of the ten biggest family offices.
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Ten biggest family offices
- Walton Enterprises LLC
It is a family office located in Bentonville, AR. This family office, as can be expected, serves the personal and business needs of the family of Sam and Helen Walton. The services that they offer include treasury, financial/accounting, tax, investment, legal, risk management/insurance, and personal administrative services. As per their LinkedIn page, they have about 51-200 employees.
- Bezos Expeditions
It was founded in 2003 to manage the personal investments of Jeff Bezos, who is the founder of Amazon.com. Over the years, Bezos Expeditions has invested in Twitter, Business Insider, General Fusion, Juno Therapeutics, Rethink Robotics, Domo, Workday, etc. More recently, they invested in GRAIL, a startup that aims to cure cancer before it happens. Also, through Bezos Expeditions, Bezos owns brands such as The Washington Post, Blue Origin space projects, and more.
- Cascade Investment
Founded in 1995 in Kirkland, Cascade Investment is an American holding and investment company. It is owned by Bill Gates and managed by Michael Larson. This company makes investments in public equity, fixed income, as well as venture capital investments. It has investments in Ginkgo BioWorks, Convoy, Delos Living and more. At one time, it held 9.8% of Strategic Hotels and Resorts.
- MSD Capital
This family office manages the capital of Michael Saul Dell and his family. It was founded in 1998 and is based in New York with offices in Santa Monica and West Palm Beach. Michael Dell hired John C. Phelan and Glenn R. Fuhrman to form MSD Capital. As per its website, Mr. Dell is not involved with the day-to-day operations of the company. The Form 13F filing of the company tells that it holds a stake in PVH Corp. (owner of Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger), Dine Brands Global and more.
- Bayshore Global Management
It is a single family office that works as a private investment vehicle for Sergey Brin, Google co-founder. Bayshore Global Management is based in Los Altos, California and has a team of many ex-bankers and philanthropy experts. It is a major player in the real estate in the Los Altos area. Bayshore operates Passerelle Investment Co., a real estate firm, and Brin Wojcicki Foundation. Along with handling Brin’s financial matters, Bayshore also looks after the family's physical safety.
- Emerson Collective LLC
It is not a typical family office, rather a social change organization. Emerson Collective invests and advocates for immigration reform, environment, school improvement, media and journalism and social justice initiatives. It was founded in 2004 in Palo Alto, California by Laurene Powell Jobs. The mission of the company is to do the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people.
- Euclidean Capital
It is an individual and family services company founded in 2009 in New York. As per its LinkedIn profile, the company has 11 to 50 employees, while its president is Ashvin Chhabra, who is also the author of The Aspirational Investor. The company recently invested in A2 Biotherapeutics, Nura Bio, Surrozen, ASAPP, Dascena and more.
- Vulcan Inc.
Vulcan Inc. or Vulcan Capital operates as an investment company. It invests in media, transportation, retail, internet and technology, education, and consumers sectors. Vulcan Inc. was founded in 1986 by former Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, and his sister Jody Allen. The company is headquartered in Seattle.
- KIRKBI A/S
It is a holding and investment company of the Kirk Kristiansen family. This company invests in bonds, corporate debt, listed equities, long-term equities, real estate and renewable energy. The objective of KIRKBI is to promote a sustainable future for the family ownership of the LEGO brand. As per its LinkedIn profile, KIRKBI has significant long-term investments in companies including ISS, Nilfisk, Landis+Gyr and Falck.
- Point72 Asset Management
It is an investment firm that offers investment advisory and portfolio management services. In 2014, SAC Capital Advisors shifted its investment operations to the Point72 Asset Management family office. Later, the company also started accepting outside capital. The company employs about 1,500 people and its main office is in Stamford, Connecticut. It has satellite offices in New York City, Singapore, London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Paris, Sydney, and Palo Alto.
