The Event
Our partner Mr. Hank Lo attended the 2016 First International Family Office Conference co-hosted by the Association of Family Offices in Asia and the Association of Family Offices in Hong Kong on 14 and 15 May 2016. The theme of the conference was “Inheritance and Transformation of the Family Businesses and the Future of Private Enterprises in China”. More than 1,300 attendees, including the Ambassador of the Embassy of Switzerland in China, Mr. Jean-Jacques de Dardel, renowned writer in economics, Mr. Wu Xiaobo, renowned academic, Mr. Wang Depei, representatives from well-known family businesses, family offices and related service agencies from China and abroad participated in this event.
Awards to SW Trustees
SW Trustees (Hong Kong) Limited, a professional trustee established by Stevenson, Wong & Co., is one of the few trustees with both a PRC and Hong Kong law firm background. We were awarded the “Most Distinctive Family Overseas Trust Planning Services Award” for reasons highlighted as:
(1) Solid experience in serving high net-worth individuals in China;
(2) Strong Chinese and global law firm background which better helps to ring fence the assets;
(3) Years of experience in advising company restructuring and litigation issues which facilitates maximum flexibility for trustees to hold family businesses;
(4) Holistic services including tax planning and citizenship planning; and
(5) Independent from asset management company of underlying financial assets under the structure.
The interview
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“Family business is the most valuable asset of many high net-worth individuals in China which must be protected under trust structure. Better corporate governance, internal control mechanism, share award scheme, intellectual property rights protection may involve potential legal disputes. All those relate to professional legal services. It is also essential to set up a firewall to preserve personal assets before undergoing reorganization of family businesses.”
Mr. Hank Lo was invited to share his insights during the “Interview on Chinese Family Businesses Services” on how trustee services can facilitate and enhance the development of family-owned businesses. Many attendees continued the dialogue with Mr. Hank Lo by having one to one discussion with him after the presentation.
Awards to AllBright Law Offices
AllBright Law Offices was also awarded the “Most Distinctive Family Legal Planning Services Award” in recognition of their innovative services in overall risk assessment on family wealth and succession planning. AllBright aims to provide all-round legal services, advice and enforcement mechanisms in wealth management, including corporate shareholding structures, matrimonial issues and family estate disputes. Senior partner of Shenzhen office, Ms. Guo Xuanling, received the award. Ms. Guo specializes in complex matrimonial issues and inheritance law and has represented many ultra HNWIs in PRC.
Joining Forces
SW provides legal solutions to both corporate and private clients. We incorporated two professional trustees in Hong Kong and New Zealand. In addition, we offer private trust company structures. Our association law firm, AllBright Law Offices, a top tier law firm in the PRC which possess a team of experienced personnel. Our trust specialists in Shanghai are responsive to clients’ needs.
Up till today, the total amount of assets owned by high net-worth individuals in China has reached RMB 160 trillion. Therefore it is important to preserve their wealth by financial wealth management.
The conference provided an excellent opportunity for the leaders in the field to share and exchange their ideas and to provide an update of these services to adapt to the ever-changing environment. Understanding client’s objectives and needs through various platforms, SW endeavors to provide tailor-made and quality trust and corporate services to our clients.
Please contact our Mr. Hank Lo for any enquiries or further information about this event.