Reference articles

• Family offices in Switzerland: landscape, list and how to choose

  There is no official list of Swiss family offices. A landscape of the players (SFO, MFO, banks, fiduciaries) and the criteria to build your own shortlist.

• The digital family office: what is changing

  Wealth aggregation, digital vaults and cybersecurity: how digital technology is transforming family office management.

• Cybersecurity and privacy for high-net-worth families in Switzerland

  Spear phishing, social engineering, family identity theft: the cyber threats targeting wealthy families as individuals, and best practices to protect against them.

• The annual calendar of a wealthy Swiss family

  Tax deadlines, holding meetings, bank reviews and governance rituals: the annual calendar coordinated by the family office for high-net-worth families in Switzerland.

• Onboarding at a family office: the first 90 days

  Wealth inventory, powers of attorney, reporting setup: what the first 90 days of a family office mandate look like and what realistic expectations are.

• Wealth holding structures in Switzerland: an overview

  Overview of holding structures in Switzerland: holding company, family foundation, trust — advantages, limitations and use cases.

• Family office and Swiss regulation: the FINMA/FinSA/FinIA perimeter explained

  When does a family office become subject to FINMA? FinSA, FinIA and the distinction between coordination and asset management: the regulatory framework explained.

• Succession planning in Switzerland: the fundamentals

  Revised 2023 statutory shares, succession agreement, executor: the fundamentals of Swiss succession law.

• Performance reporting standards: TWR, MWR and benchmarks — understanding your bank's figures

  Time-Weighted Return, Money-Weighted Return, benchmarks and hidden fees: everything you need to read and compare performance reports from your banks.

• The family governance charter: content and process

  Typical content, drafting process and example clauses of a family governance charter in Switzerland.

• Working with your existing advisers: the role of a coordinating family office

  Lawyer, notary, banker, tax adviser: how a coordinating family office orchestrates existing advisers without replacing them.

• Choosing custodian banks in Switzerland: the criteria

  Criteria for selecting Swiss custodian banks, risk diversification and the esisuisse deposit guarantee.

• Passion assets: art, watches, collections — inventory and governance

  Inventory, insurance, freeports and succession: how to integrate passion assets into family wealth governance.

• Consolidated wealth reporting explained

  How multi-bank consolidated reporting works, TWR/MWR performance calculation methods and fee transparency.

• How much does a family office cost in Switzerland?

  An overview of market billing models: percentage of assets, fixed retainer, hybrid — without Ridger's own fees.

• Real estate in the family estate: supervision and reporting

  Direct ownership or real estate company, rental value and consolidation: how to integrate real estate into family wealth reporting.

• When does a family need a family office?

  Wealth thresholds, complexity signals and key moments indicating that a family office adds genuine value.

• International families in Switzerland: lump-sum taxation and multi-jurisdiction coordination

  The Swiss lump-sum tax regime (expenditure-based taxation): eligibility conditions, participating cantons and multi-jurisdiction coordination for international families.

• Multi-family office or private bank: what are the differences?

  Independence, conflicts of interest, consolidation: what distinguishes the multi-family office from the private bank in Switzerland.

• Structured philanthropy in Switzerland: donor-advised foundations and tax deductibility

  Donor-advised foundations, the Zewo label and tax deductibility: how to structure your philanthropic commitment in Switzerland.

• What is a multi-family office?

  Definition, single vs multi-family office differences, and the profile of families that engage them in Switzerland.