I suppose 100 years ago the Private Wealth Advisory Sector was very small. Back then lawyers had a monopoly. I don't think accountants did much succession planning advice in those days, and private offices, family offices and in-house wealth planners did not yet exist (at least not as we recognise them today) and neither did the offshore trust company industry.

In 2022, it is just as well it is not just us humble solicitors giving Private Wealth advice, because there is an urgent need for succession planning around the world. The amount of work that needs to be undertaken in the next 10-15 years is staggering. Moreover, if the process is not managed properly, it will threaten economic stability. Such is the scale of family owned businesses and Private Wealth in the current century. 

It is therefore timely to see the DIFC (Dubai International Financial Centre) taking the initiative with the creation of the Global Family Business and Private Wealth Centre. This new centre, launching on the 1 September 2022, will provide advisory and concierge services, education and training, outreach and networking, in addition to publishing research.

As His Excellency, Essa Kazim, Governor of DIFC, has said: "In the next decade, families and others in the Middle East are expected to transfer AED3.67 trillion to the next generation, which illustrates the urgent need to provide them with specialist, consolidated support to help them grow."

The need is indeed urgent. The question is whether other governments will recognise the urgency and follow suit with similar initiatives.