Which are the Top Wealth Management Firms in Europe?
Wealth management firms in Europe or anywhere else, for that matter, address the needs of wealthy and affluent clients through a wide range of services. It is focused mainly on financial services and advisory services. Once the firm gathers information about the client’s needs and the quantum of resources in hand, a strategy is worked out to use the best financial products and services.
A wealth manager or a wealth management advisor uses their individual, other experts, and professionals’ knowledge and experience in various fields to plan out an approach that maximizes returns on wealth invested for clients. The areas include legal and estate planning, tax planning, accounting services, financial and investment advice, and retirement planning. Wealth management practices differ between countries because of specific statutory regulations in force in each of them.
Functions of Wealth Management Firms
The wealth management industry is an integration of various financial services and products. Generally, wealth management firms form a critical component of a large bank or investment agency. Hence, the wealth managers can access the various departments’ expertise within the larger company and offer wealthy clients with customized financial solutions to increase returns and earnings. Private wealth managers should have sufficient awareness of various aspects of financial assets management to serve their clients’ best interests.
Here are some of the key functions of wealth management companies.
Income Creation
The primary responsibility of asset managers is to devise various investment strategies that will lead to income generation sufficient to meet their high net clients’ needs. The goal is to generate extra growth of the financial portfolio to prevent erosion of net worth during inflationary times and keep the returns constant.
Asset Protection
The success of a top wealth management firms is estimated by the assets under protection or AUM and is the total market value of the investments it manages on behalf of the clients. In some countries, this is calculated by the total of bank deposits, mutual funds, and cash in the financial institution, while in others, AUM is the amount that the investor has authorized the wealth manager to trade on his/her behalf.
AUM is generally in millions of dollars, and the rich are often targeted with civil suits mostly frivolous. This has given a new role to those in asset management called “asset protection” and protects the wealthy from losing their money. There are several strategies used by asset managers in this regard, like taking cover under trust laws and keeping money in off-shore banks.
Tax Planning
An issue that often plagues high net individuals is taxes. While the common person would not mind paying more taxes on more income, it is not so with the wealthy. When the quantum of assets under management is vast, even a small difference in taxes and percentages can translate into considerable differences in after-tax returns. An asset manager has to keep track of the various types of investments taxed differently so that the investments can be balanced accordingly to ensure the most tax-efficient combination for a client.
Business Structure of Wealth Management Companies
Wealth managers are associated with the finance industry, but their business structure might differ. They could be a part of a large investment firm or a small-scale business. Clients approaching the firm will have dedicated managers working for them. Their titles are different depending on the company – financial advisor or financial consultant – but their goal is the same; to increase the wealth of high net individuals and ensure a steady rising source of income.
Leading Wealth Management Firms in Europe
There are hundreds of wealth management companies in Europe spread out over the many countries on the continent and catering to individuals with high net worth and millions in assets. Each company of Europe wealth management can rightly claim its place in the sun and be among the top 10. However, there are certain best trust companies of wealth management in Europe are mentioned here.
For this post, a few countries will be taken up, and the top firms in each will be considered. However, the list will not be in any particular order though AUM is a critical factor for inclusion.
The United Kingdom
Germany
France
Switzerland
Who are the top wealth management firms?
Wealth management companies offer various services, starting from wealth creation to tax planning, asset protection, real estate, retirement plans, etc. Each will be a top player in one or more fields. However, overall, the world’s leading companies are Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, UBS, Wells Fargo, Fidelity, and Northern Trust.
Which bank has the best wealth management?
The Bank of America Corp’s Global Wealth & Investment Management division is considered the leader in wealth management services. The Bank focuses on clients with over $250,000 in investable assets. It is number one in the world in AUM (&1.35 trillion) and has more than 20,000 wealth managers in 750 branches. The net income in 2018 was $4.1 billion.
Who is the largest wealth manager in the world?
With a $1.26 trillion AUM, 15,600 wealth managers, and 600 branches globally, Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is considered the largest wealth manager globally. In 2018, the net revenues of Morgan Stanley rose by 6 percent to $40.1 billion and net income to $8.9 billion.