wealth holders Archives - Lowenhaupt & Chasnoff

Forget All The Misdeeds – Just Trust Us

May 20, 2016 | By Charles Lowenhaupt

Cerulli Associates says that US high net worth clients prefer to hold their money at wirehouses, private banks and trust companies. This includes clients with more than $20 million dollars in that group using the wirehouses, private banks and trust companies.

Since the financial crisis in 2008, the world’s 20 largest banks have paid more than $235 billion in fines. One might ask why, after years of misbehavior by many institutions, are wealthy investors still relying on them? One might also ask how the brokerage industry can continue to attract those wealth holders given all the misdeeds and the daily fines and penalties they continue to rack up?Read More

On Privacy And The “Panama Papers”

April 6, 2016 | By Charles Lowenhaupt

The leak of 11 million documents (“The Panama Papers”) from the files of a Panama law firm, Mossack Fonseca, represents an unprecedented exposure of what is considered highly confidential information about the secret financial dealings of the some of the world’s highest profile leaders and wealthiest individuals.Read More

Why Fairness Trumps Equality In Sharing The Family Wealth

By Charles Lowenhaupt

Question: When should wealth owners plan to leave unequal portions to their children?

Answer: Strange as it might seem, “almost always.”

Before dividing an estate, wealth owners need to get past the definitional ambiguity of “equal” and “unequal.” Most wealth holders define “equal” as a dollar-for-dollar split where each child gets the same amount. Yet another perspective might consider meeting needs equally, regardless of amounts. Research shows that about two-thirds of people choose dollar-for-dollar equality at death — but in our experience, most opt for equally meeting needs while they are alive.Read More