New Paris-Based Group Seeks To Unite Family-Office Associations

What IFFO Is Doing

The International Federation of Family Office is a new Paris hub aiming to link national family-office groups across borders. So far, it counts associations in Belgium, France and Lithuania among its participants, with Canada added most recently.

IFFO says it has engaged potential partners in Germany, Italy, Switzerland and Singapore as it tries to widen the network. The federation also includes organizations that speak for multi-family offices.

Frederick Crot, IFFO's president and former head of the Association Francaise du Family Office (AFFO), said the concept took shape during an AFFO visit to Milan in 2020. He and his predecessor have been courting suitable national bodies ever since.

Why The Push Now

The effort arrives as ultra-wealthy ranks grow and family offices expand hiring across investment, banking, governance, legal and other services. Deloitte projects the tally of single family offices - typically lightly regulated private entities - will grow to around 10,700 worldwide by the decade's end, up from just over 8,000 in 2024, and describes them as an emerging "economic powerhouse." Other counts put today's number much higher.

Crot argues families face similar pain points worldwide, from succession in closely held companies and passing wealth between generations to philanthropy. As he put it: "Discussions about deals, head hunters and family office remuneration can also be helpful."

Smart investors keep learning about tools that can help them find an edge. We're hosting our first ever investor livestream on 11/17 to show you how to use ChatGPT and Claude to invest like a pro, hosted by Briefs Finance CEO Jaspreet Singh. Save your seat.

A Sector Tiptoeing Into The Open

Crot said the push for a global umbrella group suggests a traditionally discreet corner of finance is inching toward more openness. Progress will be gradual, though: in Switzerland, the Swiss Single Family Office Association has not yet joined IFFO.

Family offices differ widely by age, assets and investing style, yet more networks and curated communities have popped up as these low-profile outfits seek quiet ways to share know-how and swap deal leads. History runs deep too: Many credit John D. Rockefeller with creating what is widely viewed as the earliest family office, dating to the early 1880s. Today, some of the largest include Bill Gates' Cascade Investment LLC and Amancio Ortega's Pontegadea Inversiones SL.

The Bottom Line For Investors

Bloomberg's Billionaires Index estimates that at least 20 percent of the world's 500 wealthiest individuals now use an investment firm to oversee their fortunes, together topping $5 trillion. That concentration of capital helps explain why an organized, cross-border family-office network is getting attention - and why IFFO's slow build could matter for how big private money coordinates in the years ahead.

Exploring new approaches quietly sharpens decision making for anyone managing wealth. On 11/17, our CEO Jaspreet Singh goes live for our first ever investor livestream on how to use ChatGPT and Claude to invest like a pro. Register to join him.